[75], In July, Wellington bettered her own ironman-distance world record at Challenge Roth by exactly one minute, to 8:18:13. Simply amazing. Every breath hurt and I couldn't move my arm properly. She also worked on post-conflict environmental reconstruction policy. Following her 2010 world record, her former coach Brett Sutton described Wellington as "a person of true international sporting excellence that is overshadowed by no one in any other sport."[5]. She returned to winning form only six days later, at the shorter Zürich triathlon. "[79] The flight had caused her leg to swell up again, but she was still able to do some bike and run training. I never want to look back and think ‘what if’. 2007: Great Britain’s Chrissie Wellington wins the first of four IRONMAN World Championship titles, and became the first professional athlete to do so within a year of turning professional. The triathlon world fell in love with … We have the power to change things. [31] She enjoyed some success in B and C grade cross-country events around London,[2] winning several races including the South of Thames Championship in December 2006. First Ironman world championship win On 13 October 2007 (14 October UTC), Wellington won the Ironman world championship title at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, together with US$110,000 prize money. After all, earlier in 2007, she had absolutely crushed her competition in the uber-challenging Alpe d’Huez Triathlon. I got my first time trial bike that weekend, and spent the month before Kona learning how to ride in what was a completely alien position. Sure, anyone who had been closely watching her career up to that point may have considered her a dark horse. I didn’t really know anything about longer course racing. I didn’t know where that would take me in terms of triathlon, but unless I gave it a shot at going pro I would never really know. I was so proud and pleased just to have been on the start line at Kona – to come up against some of the best triathletes in the world was an amazing opportunity for me. Monde Elite Femmes", "Officiële uitslagen 23e Triathlon Holten 2007", "Züri Triathlon + IRONKIDS 2007 - Rangliste nach Name "W, "Mazda Blenheim Triathlon - Final Results", "2007 Results, Subic Bay ITU Triathlon Asian Cup", "Bangkok Triathlon - Olympic distance results 2007", "2007 Mekong River ITU Triathlon Asian Cup", "2006 ITU Age Group Triathlon World Championships", "Triathlon Results for Christine Wellington", "Looking for Clues: Hawaii Review: Doc Talks Hawaii 2011", "Wellington Wins World Ironman Championships", "Beeb snubs medallists and rides equality out of town", "Chrissie Wellington Surprises Even Herself", "Birmingham Alumnus Becomes Nation's First Ironman World Champion", "Chrissie Wellington - Work, Running and Tasting Ttriathlon", "Chrissie Wellington's pre triathlon days - Tri247", "Tri UK Shropshire Triathlon 2006 results", "ITU Age Group Triathlon World Championships (Lausanne, Switzerland)", "Chrissie Wellington - Back to work and triathlons", "Checking In With Three-Time Ironman World Champion Chrissie Wellington", "Longue Distance: la fin est proche pour les premiers", "Unknown Wellington gains iron win in Hawaii", "Chrissie Wellington's Ironman Hawaii win is biggest upset in Ironman Hawaii history", "Wellington close to world record at Frankfurt Ironman; McCormack sets course record in men's event", "Brett Sutton Interview: Part 1 - Slowtwitch.com", "Wellington Untouchable, Macca Fights for Win at IM Germany", "Triathlon EDF Alpe d'Huez - Résultats 2008, Mercredi 30 juillet 2008", "LONGUE DISTANCE - temps montée de l'Alpe Mercredi 30 juillet 2008", "Result World Championship O3 by Category", "Alexander, Wellington Win 2008 Ironman World Championship", "Chrissie Wellington statement - a path to new adventures", "Updated: Chrissie Wellington Parts Ways With Simon Lessing", "Ironman World Championship results 2009", "Emphatic Roth wins for Henning and Wellington", "Einzelergebnis RUN Männer/ Single Results RUN", "Timberman Triathlon: Potts, Wellington set course records in earning 3-peat", "Reigning world Ironman champ Wellington out with illness", "Chrissie Wellington – Parasites and thumping tubs", "Perfect ten: Chrissie Wellington smashes Ironman Arizona - Tri247", "Chrissie's Arizona redemption - Slowtwitch.com", "Bracht hangs tough, Wellington dominates in AZ - Slowtwitch.com", "Records Annihilated at 2011 Spec-Savers Ironman South Africa", "Kevin Mackinnon recaps some quotes from Women's Champion Chrissie Wellington", "From The Inside Triathlon Archives: Letter From Kona - pt 4", "Chrissie Wellington to Take Break from Ironman", "A Conversation With Chrissie: The Decision To Take Time Away", "Raelert traut sich, Wellington heiratet Lowe", "Chrissie Wellington: I hold the Ironman world record – but my biggest battle has been with my eating disorders", "Chrissie Wellington Crushes Everything Always (Now It's Ultramarathoning! On 13 October 2007 (14 October UTC), Wellington won the Ironman world championship title at Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, together with US$110,000 prize money. She wrote, "I saw my family at mile three and gave them a smile, but inside the pain was unbearable. Later the same month she entered her first longer-distance event, the UK half-Ironman race at Wimbleball, but suffered mechanical problems with her bicycle (forcing her to climb the steep Exmoor hills in too high a gear) and finished in 5th place. Christine Ann Wellington MBE, (født 18. februar 1977) er en tidligere britisk triatlet og verdensrekordholder på ironman-distancen. [62], The injury severely limited her training, but once the cast was removed she was able to train intensively with her friend Catriona Morrison near Águilas in south-east Spain. After 10 days of acclimatisation at her team's base in Thailand, Wellington won Ironman Korea, in very hot conditions, finishing over 50 minutes ahead of 2nd placed Yasuko Miyazaki, in 7th place overall. And then, assigned bib number 107, was one Chrissie Wellington, a lithe, tanned 30-year-old representing Great Britain. In February 2013, Chrissie joined Parkrun's staff as Head of Participation. All I said was “am I ready?” Next thing I knew it was 26 August and I was on the start line at Ironman Korea. )", "Chrissie Wellington finishes the Comrades Marathon", "Hawaii Highs: the IM World Championships 2007", "Chrissie Wellington named 2009 Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year", "Ironman Champion to receive honorary degree", "Written evidence submitted by Christine Ann Wellington [WAS0024]", World Champions in women's ITU Long Distance Triathlon, World Champions in women's Ironman Triathlon, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Chrissie_Wellington&oldid=998422616, Officers of the Order of the British Empire, The Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year winners, Articles with dead external links from January 2017, Articles with permanently dead external links, Articles with dead external links from August 2017, Articles with dead external links from October 2010, Articles with dead external links from April 2016, Pages containing London Gazette template with parameter supp set to y, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using Infobox sportsperson with unknown parameters, Wikipedia articles with PLWABN identifiers, Wikipedia articles with WORLDCATID identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. [14] She had hoped to improve her marathon time in the April 2003 London Marathon, but in March she collided with a car while riding her commuter bike in Clapham. "[4], She lowered the world record on all three occasions (2009–2011) she raced Challenge Roth (formerly Quelle Challenge Roth) at Roth in Bavaria, Germany. Paula Newby-Fraser's course record at the Ironman World Championships had stood for 17 years until Wellington broke it in 2009. Chrissie Wellington’s Journey I was staring at the television watching the 2007 Kona Ironman and wondering who Chrissie Wellington is? [65] In so doing, she set a new women's record for the bike split of 4:36:33, and then finished the race with a "stunning" 2:48:54 for the marathon, beating Erin Baker's record of 2:49:53 which had stood since 1990. On 17 August 2008 she achieved her first win at the half-Ironman distance at the Timberman 70.3 triathlon in Gilford, New Hampshire, placing sixth overall, 18 minutes ahead of runner-up Amanda Stevens. What happened in the Pro Women's race at the Hawaii Ironman in Kona this year was nothing short of incredible. [10] In her victory speech at the 2007 Hawaii Ironman, she referred to her experience teaching at Beaver Country Day School near Boston, where she first noticed the difference that sport can make to children's lives. [71] Despite riding the last two miles of the bike course on a flat tyre, she beat the previous course record by 35 minutes, and runner-up Linsey Corbin's time by 29 minutes. Chrissie Wellington, the 4-time Ironman World Champion, the holder of the women’s Ironman distance and Ironman world best times, talks about her decision to take a year off from Ironman competition Online triathlon magazine with product reviews, a bike fit guide, training tips, and several regular columnists. 2007 started very well, I came second in my first ITU points race in Thailand, won an Olympic distance race in Bangkok, the ITU points race at Subic Bay in the Philippines, an Olympic distance event in Zurich and the wonderful sprint triathlon in Bleinheim, UK. She became, after meeting the parents of Jon Blais at her first world championship, an ambassador for the Blazeman Foundation, performing a "Blazeman roll" in his memory at the finish line of all her triathlon races since then. In 2008 she won at Ironman Her marathon time of 2:44:35 was also a new world record. In 2008 it was 15 minutes, … "[72], Having trained in Stellenbosch since mid-February,[74] Wellington won Ironman South Africa on 10 April in a new "M-dot" world record time of 8:33:56, lowering her own record by a little over 2 minutes. [90] Having missed the 2000 Olympics when she was in Australia, she was keen to experience the Olympics in her home country in any capacity, whether as a spectator, as a volunteer, or in the media. Reflecting on her victory three weeks later, Wellington wrote: Anyone that knows me has probably been on the receiving end of one of my rants. By February I had left London and was making plans to join the then newly formed triathlon team, TeamTBB at their training camp in Thailand. [25] This qualified her to enter the ITU World Age Group (Amateur) Championships in Lausanne, Switzerland, a title which she won on 2 September 2006, beating her nearest rival by 4 minutes and 2 seconds. [18] In the following two months, she won this race on both occasions. [95][96], In June 2019, Chrissie completed the Comrades Marathon, one of the world's toughest ultra marathons. [81] Her overall time was second only to the course record she had set in 2009. Poverty, conflict, violence, crime, exclusion and so forth are not givens. "[27], During this period, like most amateur triathletes, she had also continued entering running races. She finished in 8th place overall, nearly 35 minutes ahead of runner-up Rachel Joyce, who in turn broke the previous course record by 8 minutes. Despite losing around 10 minutes because of a flat tyre – a delay which would have been greater if fellow competitor Rebekah Keat had not given her a spare CO2 cartridge – she finished some 15 minutes ahead of second-placed Yvonne van Vlerken.[50]. She finished 2nd in this race, despite having no previous kayaking experience, apart from some brief training before the race. But this time she was not only injured, she was going up against a woman who was the defending champion and was considered the best pure runner in the sport. You only get one chance at life and the most important thing is for me to know that I have given it everything, fulfilled my potential and been the best that I can be. I flew to Hawaii nine days before the race……..and never in a million years could I have predicted what would happen next! In addition to the Ironman titles, she was also the 2006 International Triathlon Union (ITU) Age Group World Champion and the 2008 ITU long-distance World Champion. In 2007, Chrissie Wellington shocked the triathlon world by winning the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. Two exceptional opportunities arising in 2012 were promoting her book A Life Without Limits (due to be published the following month) and the London Olympics. I always thought I would focus on Olympic distance triathlon, and had the Olympics as a distant dream. After the race, her coach Dave Scott told journalist T J Murphy that Wellington was "traumatised" by the effects of her injuries, and that despite her "stoic" attitude, her injuries were "worse than any of us might have imagined", adding, "I don't think Chrissie will appreciate me telling you this, but it's important." Elle remporte le titre et la prime de 110 000 dollars (USD) en clôturant l’épreuve en 9 h 8 min 45 s . She had to put her triathlon racing on hold for her sabbatical in Nepal, where she was based in Kathmandu, at an altitude of 1350 m (4430 ft). ), Member of the Order of the British Empire, Officer of the Order of the British Empire, ITU Long Distance World Championship (O3), "Ironman World Championship 2011 race results", "Timberman 70.3 2009 Pro Order of Finish", "Ironman Australia Triathlon results (athlete tracker)", "World Championships Triathlon Long Distance (O3) Almere 31-08-2008", "Timberman 70.3 2008 Pro Order of Finish", "Le Longue Distance Vaujany - l'Alpe d'Huez, Mercredi 30 juillet 2008", "2008 Tongyeong BG Triathlon World Cup results", "2007 Aviva Singapore Ironman 70.3 Triathlon", "Le Longue Distance Vaujany - l'Alpe d'Huez, 1er août 2007", "TRIATHLON DE LORIENT Chp. [29][30] Unable to run the marathon, she took up swimming again, leading her to try triathlon racing in 2004. She is the only triathlete, male or female, to have won the World Championship less than a year after turning professional, an achievement described by the British Triathlon Federation as "a remarkable feat, deemed to be a near impossible task for any athlete racing as a rookie at their first Ironman World Championships. Chrissie “Smiles” Wellington OBE won the IRONMAN® World Championship in three consecutive years (2007–2009), but could not start the 2010 World Championship race because of illness. Her marathon time was a course record until Carfrae crossed the line in second place 2 minutes 49 seconds later, in turn setting a new marathon course record of 2:52:09. I know now that Brett had other ideas, but he never told me at the time…. (750m, 20km, 5km). teamTBB is focused on helping "development athletes" who might otherwise not have the opportunity to succeed in professional triathlon. "[59] A year later her coach Dave Scott revealed that she had an upper hamstring injury and that, "Deep down inside, she had a bit of a struggle in 2009." Her marathon time of 3:01:53 was beaten by only two men. "[69] Subsequent blood tests, which also included an anti-doping control, showed that she had, or had had, bacterial strep throat, bacterial pneumonia and West Nile virus. [91], On 3 December Wellington announced that she had decided to make her retirement from professional triathlon racing permanent. And as for Kona – that was something that hadn’t even entered my mind! She didn't take a moment to enjoy until she crossed the line. [33] She said of Sutton, "my training was more geared to standard distance, with not much high volume. Not only did Wellington set new female bike, run and course records, but her marathon time of 2:52:54 was also faster than all of the men. [17], Wellington's first[14] triathlon race was at the Eton Super Sprints on 16 May 2004, where she finished third. [...] It was chilling to watch because you could see Wellington racing her way right to the hospital, paying literally no heed to her brain's internal governor – one that has been wired into the human body through millions of years of evolution."[87]. The relay was in the 4xswimming, 4xbike, 4xrun format with each relay leg being the sprint distance. Christine Ann Wellington OBE (born 18 February 1977) is an English former professional triathlete and four-time Ironman Triathlon World Champion. [21] August 2004 she was part of a 4 person team that won the mixed team British triathlon relay championship in Nottingham. "[60], On Saturday 2 January, during an intended 5-hour training ride in the Surrey Hills with her boyfriend and two other friends, Wellington fell from her bicycle when it slipped on black ice. [99] She was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2010 Birthday Honours for services to ironman triathlons[100][101] and promoted to Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2016 New Year Honours for services to sport and charity. I was put in touch with the well known coach Brett Sutton, and jumped at the chance to spend a week with him at his camp in Switzerland in January 2007. [64], On 18 July 2010 Wellington defended her Challenge Roth title in Germany in a new ironman-distance world record time of 8:19:13, placing seventh overall and bettering her own record by more than 12 minutes. Some of the other girls will. This is why he is so special: he has an ability to spot potential even if the athlete can't. To give you an insight into Chrissie Wellington's mind, her first talk to me about the media and the frenzy around her, was "Boss, I don't want us to lose sight of what we discussed about my goal. She crossed the finish line with a marathon time of 2:52:41, winning in an overall time of 8:55:08. Like a stuck record I ramble on about development to anyone that will (pretend to) listen. After taking a year’s sabbatical, four-time Ironman World Champion and holder of all women’s Ironman-distance records Chrissie Wellington announces her retirement at age 35 from professional Ironman racing.