Chris McCormack won his second straight Waikoloa Triathlon title, and also set a second straight course record along the Kohala Coast.
McCormack, 36, of Australia, finished the 1.5K swim, 40K bike and 10K run course in 1 hour, 49 minutes and 24 seconds. That sliced just about 1 minute off the course record, which McCormack set last year.
With a field of 1,068 second place went to Tyler Butterfield, who was 30 seconds behind McCormack, and third place was Honolulu professional Tim Marr, who won the race in 2006 and 2007.
Speaking to the Hawaii 24/7, McCormack, who had been suffering a stomach illness, said Butterfield pushed him to the win.
“I struggled a bit on the back end of the bike, but Butterfield kept me honest on the run,” McCormack said. “I’m happy with everything today.
McCormack and Butterfield have known each other since 1996 when the Australian rookie stayed with the family while in Bermuda for a race.
“It’s a dream to finish within a minute of Chris McCormack,” Butterfield said. “When you grow up watching every race, it’s just great.”
McCormack said the pair have been training off and on since that Bermuda race and he is pleased to see the youngster racing at such a high level.
“One day soon, I’ll be talking about my old glory days and watching him,” he said.
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