Posted: April 3, 2005

Triathlon: Zeiger, Mueckel, MacDonald to compete at the inaugural Ironman Arizona Triathlon

TEMPE, Ariz.-Ironman standouts Joanna Zeiger (Boulder, Colo.), Ute Mueckel (Germany) and Marilyn MacDonald (Canada) will compete in the 2005 Ironman Arizona Triathlon set to take place on Saturday, April 9 in Tempe.

Zeiger ranks as one of the top U.S. female athletes that compete at the Ironman-distance.

Most recently the 34-year-old Zeiger finished second at the 2004 Subaru Ironman Canada Triathlon held in Penticton, B.C.

Zeiger also finished fifth at Ironman Florida and second at Ironman USA Lake Placid in 2001, and was fifth overall at the Ironman Triathlon World Championship in 2000.

Zeiger has also been a standout at the Olympic-distance finished 4th at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney.

Mueckel has claimed a pair of Ironman titles in her career, winning Ironman Germany (1996) and Ironman Switzerland (1997). Mueckel posted times of nine hours, 21 minutes and 30 seconds and 9:32:48 in winning the Germany and Switzerland titles respectively.

MacDonald posted the first Ironman win of her career by winning Ironman Malaysia in 2004. The Canadian standout also place second at Ironman France that same year.

The trio join 2004 Ironman USA Lake Placid champion Kate Major (Australia) and two-time Ironman Wisconsin champion Heather Gollnick (Hartford, Wisc.) in what is quickly becoming a top-flight women’s field.

The inaugural Ironman Arizona Triathlon, which will take place in Tempe and will feature a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and a complete marathon all run in succession. More than 1,900 athletes from around the world are expected to compete in the event. Athletes will competing for 80 qualifying spots to the 2005 Ironman Triathlon World Championship, as well as a $75,000 pro prize purse.

For more information on the event, log onto www.ironmanarizona.com.