Posted: November 6, 2005

Triathlon: Comerford, Vanhoenacker claim women’s and men’s titles at 2005 Ford Ironman Florida

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla.—Bella Comerford (Scotland) continued her dominance in Panama City Beach by claiming her third women’s title at the 2005 Ford Ironman Florida Triathlon held on Saturday, Nov. 5 at Panama City Beach, Fla.

The Scottish native finished with an overall time of nine hours, 33 minutes and nine seconds. Comerford finished second at the 2004 Panama City Beach event after claiming consecutive titles in 2002 and 2003.

Switzerland’s Sibylle Matter finished second with an overall time of 9:36:45. Matter competed with Comerford for the first half of the run but was unable to close the gap at the end. Matter’s has finished first at the Half Ironman UK in 2001 and 2004.

Gabriela Loskotova (Czech Republic) rounded out the top three in the women’s field, matching a career-best third-place finish with an overall time of 9:42:29. Tereza Macel (Czech Republic) finished fourth in 9:43:18, and Karen Holloway (Richmond, Va.) finished fifth with an overall time of 9:47:28.

On the men’s side, Marino Vanhoenacker (Belgium) claimed the first Ironman title of his career with an overall time of 8:28:26. Vanhoenacker previously finished fifth at Ford Ironman Florida in 2001 and second at Ironman Malaysia in 2003.

Steffen Liebetrau (Germany) capitalized on an excellent bike time of 4:29:24 in taking second place (8:33:51). Liebetrau competed in four races in 2005 and finished in the top ten in each event, including a second-place finish at Ironman Lanzarote.

Germany was well represented at the 2005 Ford Ironman Florida, as Liebetrau’s fellow countryman Markus Fachbach finished third (8:41:22). Chris Dmitrieff (Australia) finished fourth with an overall time of 8:41:40, and Austria’s Gernot Seidl finished fifth (8:46:50).

2065 triathletes from 35 countries around the world competed at the seventh annual Ford Ironman Florida. Athletes competed for 80 qualifying spots to the 2006 Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, as well as a $55,000 pro-prize purse.

Men’s field:
1.      Marino Vanhoenacker, Belgium, 8:28:26
2.      Steffen Liebetrau, Germany, 8:33:51
3.      Markus Fachbach, Germany, 8:41:22
4.      Chris Dmitrieff, Australia, 8:41:40
5.      Gernot Seidl, Austria, 8:46:50
6.      Stephen Bayliss, England, 8:47:06
7.      Kyle Marcotte, Canada, 8:54:16
8.      Justin Daerr, Mount Crested, Colo., 8:57:28
9.      Jamey Yon, Gainsville, Ga., 8:58:02
10.     Thierry Claes, Belgium, 8:58:21

Women’s Field
1.      Bella Comerford, Scotland, 9:33:09
2.      Sibylle Matter, Switzerland, 9:36:45
3.      Gabriela Loskotova, Czech Republic, 9:42:29
4.      Tereza Macel, Czech Republic, 9:43:18
5.      Karen Holloway, Richmand, Va., 9:47:28
6.      Carole Sharpless, Marietta Ga., 9:50:31
7.      Lesley Grice, Canada, 9:54:46
8.      Marie Danais, Canada, 9:56:24
9.      Sally Speck, Kenneth Square, Penn., 9:58:38
10.     Paolina Allan, Canada, 9:59:53