IRONMAN RANKINGS AND RACE NEWS 2009

Final Rankings for 2009

2009-10-12T06:27:00.004+13:00

The consistency of Luke McKenzie and Bella Bayliss throughout the season paid off with both managing to hold out 2009 world champions Craig Alexander and Chrissie Wellington.

MALE

1

Luke McKenzie

190

2

Craig Alexander

170

3

Andreas Raelert

150

4

Chris Lieto

130

5

Petr Vabrousek

122

6

Marino Vanhoenacker

120

7

Rasmus Henning

110

8

Timo Bracht

105

9

Maik Twelsiek

100

10

Ronnie Schildknecht

94

11=

Stephen Bayliss

87

11=

Eduardo Stula

87

13=

Tim Berkel

80

13=

Jordan Rapp

80

13=

Raynard Tissink

80

13=

Chris McCormack

80

17

Bert Jaemmer

79

18

Cameron Brown

76

19

Patrick Vernay

75

20

Eneko Llanos Bruquera

70

FEMALE

1

Bella Bayliss

264

2

Chrissie Wellington

230

3

Tereza Macel

200

4

Gina Ferguson

133

5

Charlotte Paul

120

6

Sandra Wallenhorst

113

7

Rachel Joyce

105

8

Dede Griesbauer

101

9

Miranda Carfrae

100

10

Belinda Granger

94

11

Virginia Berasategui

90

12

Tyler Stewart

85

13

Tine Deckers

83

14

Sonia Tajsich

82

15

Lucie Zelonkova

80

16=

Edith Niederfriniger

77

16=

Joanna Lawn

77

18

Irene Kinnegim

73

19

Samantha McGlone

70

20

Sibylle Matter

68

Ironman Rankings as of 13th September

2009-09-14T12:29:00.004+12:00

Below are the ironman rankings just before we head into the final standings determined at the World Championships in Hawaii.

Points for Hawaii will be significantly more than the regional ironman races (this is explained above) and will go down to 20th position.

MALE

1	Luke McKenzie	170
2	Petr Vabrousek	122
3	Marino Vanhoenacker	120
4	Stephen Bayliss	87
5=	Tim Berkel	80
5=	Jordan Rapp	80
5=	Raynard Tissink	80
8=	Ronnie Schildknecht	77
8=	Maik Twelsiek	77
10	Cameron Brown	76

FEMALE

1	Bella Bayliss	264
2	Tereza Macel	140
3	Gina Ferguson	133
4	Charlotte Paul	120
5	Belinda Granger	94
6=	Chrissie Wellington	80
6=	Lucie Zelonkova	80
8	Sandra Wallenhorst	78
9	Irene Kinnegim	73
10	Dede Griesbauer	71

Ironman Rankings as of 31st August

2009-08-31T12:34:00.002+12:00

On the men's rankings there is not much movement with Luke McKenzie still leading after adding another second place finish at Ironman Louisville to his impressive season. Jordan Rapp moves up to 5th equal position after his victory at Ironman Canada.

On the women's side Tereza Macel moves up into second position after another very dominant victory at Ironman Canada, while Belinda Granger moves into 5th position after her second place finish to Macel. However, Bella Bayliss still holds a commanding lead over the other women.

MALE

1	Luke McKenzie	170
2	Marino Vanhoenacker	120
3	Petr Vabrousek	114
4	Stephen Bayliss	87
5=	Tim Berkel	80
5=	Jordan Rapp	80
7=	Ronnie Schildknecht	77
7=	Maik Twelsiek	77
9	Cameron Brown	76
10=	Patrick Vernay	75
10=	Andreas Raelert	75

FEMALE

1	Bella Bayliss	264
2	Tereza Macel	140
3	Gina Ferguson	133
4	Charlotte Paul	120
5	Belinda Granger	94
6=	Chrissie Wellington	80
6=	Lucie Zelonkova	80
8	Sandra Wallenhorst	78
9	Dede Griesbauer	71
10	Sibylle Matter	68

September sees just one Ironman race at Wisconsin, USA and I will be back to update the rankings after this.

Ironman Rankings as of July 27th

2009-07-27T16:03:00.002+12:00

The men's table is still led by Luke McKenzie, followed by Marino Vanhoenacker. Ronnie Schildknecht and Maik Twelsiek both move into 5th equal position after their wins this month in Switzerland and Lake Placid respectively.

Meanwhile, nothing has changed at the top of the women's table with Bella Bayliss still leading followed by Gina Ferguson and Charlotte Paul. Sibylle Matter and Tereza Macel both move into the top 10 with their wins at Switzerland and Lake Pacid respectively.

MALE RANKING

1	Luke McKenzie	140
2	Marino Vanhoenacker	120
3	Petr Vabrousek	114
4	Tim Berkel	80
5=	Ronnie Schildknecht	77
5=	Maik Twelsiek	77
7	Cameron Brown	76
8=	Patrick Vernay	75
8=	Andreas Raelert	75
10	Eduardo Stula	71

FEMALE RANKING

1	Bella Bayliss	204
2	Gina Ferguson	133
3	Charlotte Paul	120
4=	Chrissie Wellington	80
4=	Lucie Zelonkova	80
4=	Tereza Macel	80
7	Sandra Wallenhorst	78
8	Dede Griesbauer	71
9	Sibylle Matter	68
10	Belinda Granger	64

I will update the rankings again at the end of August after Ironman UK, Louisville and Canada.

Ironman Rankings as of June 28

2009-06-29T03:38:00.003+12:00

Luke McKenzie is now the clear leader of the male rankings table followed by Petr Vabrousek. Not much has changed in the female rankings with Bella Bayliss still leading Gina Ferguson.

MALE RANKINGS

1	Luke McKenzie	140
2	Petr Vabrousek	105
3	Tim Berkel	80
4	Cameron Brown	76
5	Patrick Vernay	75
6	Eduardo Stula	69
7=	Tom Evans	60
7=	Andreas Raelert	60
7=	Marino Vanhoenacker	60
7=	Rasmus Henning	60
7=	Bert Jaemmer	60
7=	Francisco Pontano	60
7=	Marcel Zamora Perez	60

FEMALE RANKINGS

1	Bella Bayliss	144
2	Gina Ferguson	133
3	Charlotte Paul	120
4	Chrissie Wellington	80
5	Dede Griesbauer	71
6	Belinda Granger	64
7=	Heleen Bij De Vaate	60
7=	Lucie Zelonkova	60
7=	Rachel Joyce	60
7=	Nicole Klinger	60
7=	Tyler Stewart	60
7=	Tine Deckers	60

The month of July will be the busiest of the year with ironman racing taking place in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the USA. I will update the table at the end of July.

Ironman Rankings as of 1st of June

2009-06-02T01:34:00.004+12:00

Here are the rankings tables as it stands post Ironman Brazil. We see the hard working ethic of Petr Vabrousek finally paying off as he moves into the top spot, with Luke McKenzie and Tim Berkel close behind. Eduardo Stula with his win at Ironman Brazil is the big mover this month moving into 6th position.

On the women's side Bella Bayliss is now in the leading position followed by Gina Ferguson, and Charlotte Paul.

MALE RANKING

Ranking	Name	Total
1	Petr Vabrousek	85
2=	Luke McKenzie	80
2=	Tim Berkel	80
4	Cameron Brown	76
5	Patrick Vernay	75
6	Eduardo Stula	69
7=	Tom Evans	60
7=	Andreas Raelert	60
7=	Marino Vanhoenacker	60
7=	Rasmus Henning	60

FEMALE RANKING

Ranking	Name	Total
1	Bella Bayliss	144
2	Gina Ferguson	133
3	Charlotte Paul	120
4	Chrissie Wellington	80
5	Dede Griesbauer	71
6	Belina Granger	64
7=	Heleen Bij De Vaate	60
7=	Lucie Zelonkova	60
7=	Rachel Joyce	60
10	Edith Niederfriniger	50
11	Joanna Lawn	37
12	Rebekah Keat	33

June will be another busy month with 3 ironman races taking place in Japan, USA and France. I will update the rankings at the end of this month.

May Update

2009-05-15T15:17:00.002+12:00

There will be 2 ironman races taking place in the month of May. Ironman Lanzarote and Ironman Brazil, and then the ironman season really heats up with 5 European Ironman, 5 North American Ironman and Ironman Japan all taking place in the next 3 months or so. I will update the leaders table once a month as we gear towards the world championships in Hawaii. Currently leading the tables are Kiwi Gina Ferguson for the women and Aussies Luke McKenzie and Tim Berkel for the men. Look for things to mix up a bit more with the season moving into the Northern Hemisphere.

Rankings post Ironman China

2009-04-20T17:11:00.002+12:00

Not a lot has changed on the men's side. Rasmus Henning moves into the top 10 with his victory in China and Petr Vabrousek into the top 5. Top of the table is still owned by Aussies Luke McKenzie and Tim Berkel, each with a win and a third place.

On the women's side the big mover is Charlotte Paul who now takes the runner-up position. She has now a 1st, 2nd and a 3rd to go with her 11th position in Hawaii last year. Gina Ferguson is just in front with her two victories and 8th position at Hawaii. With her 2nd place at China, Edith Niederfriniger now moves into the top 10.

MEN

Ranking	Name	Points
1=	Luke McKenzie	80
1=	Tim Berkel	80
3	Cameron Brown	76
4	Patrick Vernay	75
5	Petr Vabrousek	65
6=	Andreas Raelert	60
6=	Marino Vanhoenacker	60
6=	Tom Evans	60
6=	Rasmus Henning	60
10	Jozsef Major	35

WOMEN

Ranking	Name	Points
1	Gina Ferguson	133
2	Charlotte Paul	120
3	Bella Bayliss	84
4	Chrissie Wellington	80
5	Belinda Granger	64
6=	Heleen Bij De Vaate	60
6=	Lucie Zelonkova	60
8	Edith Niederfriniger	50
9	Joanna Lawn	37
10	Rebekah Keat	33

Ironman China

2009-04-19T21:44:00.002+12:00

It was a tough day for racing at Ironman China today with severe heat and humidity making for some very slow times. Rasmus Henning was in a class of his own until the last 10km where he slowed dramatically suffering from cramps. Second went to Patrick Walliman in his first race as a professional. Jozsef Major had a tough day after his bike was lost and he had to ride on an unfamiliar one and he finished as the third placed professional. The rest of the professional men's field dropped off during the bike and the run leg and were beaten by age groupers and professional women.

Charlotte Paul was one of those women. Finishing 5th overall. Tereza Macel came off the bike with over a 15 minute lead but it didn't take long until Paul was in front. Niederfriniger also passed Macel for second place.

Men

1	Henning, Rasmus	1/1/1	34/MPRO	00:40:04	04:29:53	03:38:22	08:53:20
2	Wallimann, Patrick	12/2/2	36/MPRO	00:50:40	04:49:49	03:36:35	09:22:46
3	Schifferle, Mike	4/2/1	36/M35-39	00:50:41	04:44:24	03:46:42	09:28:49
4	Major, Jozsef	11/3/3	30/MPRO	00:49:30	04:53:26	03:49:52	09:38:52
5	Park, Byung Hoon	15/8/4	38/MPRO	01:04:24	04:57:32	03:48:47	09:57:10
6	Ikegata, Shigenobu	10/7/5	/MPRO	00:49:03	05:07:57	03:57:57	09:59:55
7	Evoe, Patrick	14/4/6	32/MPRO	00:58:35	04:45:41	04:14:43	10:03:38
8	Attamimi, Assad	5/2/1	34/M30-34	00:56:14	05:08:41	03:57:22	10:06:24
9	Teramoto, Yoshiaki	10/4/2	34/M30-34	01:10:09	05:09:33	03:41:24	10:09:15
10	Vabrousek, Petr	13/5/7	36/MPRO	00:51:48	04:55:00	04:18:09	10:12:06

Women

1	Paul, Charlotte	6/4/1	36/WPRO	00:54:59	05:12:01	03:35:44	09:48:14
2	Niederfriniger, Edith	4/3/2	38/WPRO	00:52:31	05:13:32	03:50:15	10:01:39
3	Macel, Tereza	1/2/3	35/WPRO	00:46:40	05:04:22	04:17:29	10:13:43
4	Phelan, Donna	3/7/4	37/WPRO	00:52:29	05:24:41	04:03:13	10:25:15
5	Loeffler, Kim	9/5/5	37/WPRO	01:03:44	05:06:37	04:14:43	10:29:53
6	biscay, hillary	2/6/6	31/WPRO	00:47:12	05:29:29	04:16:59	10:39:14
7	Rekas, Lidia	2/2/1	29/W25-29	01:05:59	05:37:13	03:59:48	10:50:13

Ironman China Preview

2009-04-14T18:58:00.002+12:00

Ironman China is heating up to be a great race. In the men all eyes will be on Rasmus Henning as he attempts his first iron distance race. The Dane has been very successful over the shorter distance but will be making a big step up as he faces competion from Jozsef Major (winner of Ironman Arizona 2008 April version), Tim Marr who placed 3rd in China last year, the racing machine Petr Vabrousek, and Byung Hoon Park.

The women's race will be a batle between several previous Ironman winners. Hillary Biscay, Edith Niederfiniger, Mariska Kramer-Postma, Charlotte Paul and Tereza Macel will all be looking to add Ironman China to their tropy cabinets, and will also face a challenge from American Kim Loeffler who will be determined to gain her first ironman victory.

My picks for the win will be Tim Marr and Charlotte Paul.

1 Byung Hoon PARK

2 Donna PHELAN

3 Timothy MARR

4 Tereza MACEL

5 Mathieu OHALLORAN

6 Kim LOEFFLER

7 Petr VABROUSEK

8 Charlotte PAUL

9 Rasmus HENNING

10 Hillary BISCAY

11 Justin GRANGER

12 Edith NIEDERFRINIGER

13 Patrick EVOE

14 Jocelyn Sui-Yee WONG

15 Chris WATERHOUSE

16 Monika STADLMANN

17 Jens THÖNNES

18 Yvette GRICE

19 Jozsef MAJOR

20 Mariska KRAMER-POSTMA

21 Keegan WILLIAMS

22 Kelly LILJEBLAD

23 Kjell SCHIOEBERG

24 Manuel HUERTA

25 Markus STRINI

26 Patrick WALLIMANN

27 Paul AMBROSE

28 Paul MATTHEWS

29 Scott DEFILIPPIS

30 Shigenobu IKEGATA

31 Zach RUBLE

Ironman Rankings after Ironman South Africa

2009-04-06T18:40:00.002+12:00

Not much has changed at the top of the table as many of those racing Ironman South Africa were racing their first ironman of the season. Marino Vanhoenacker moves up to 5th equal position after his South African victory while Aussies Tim Berkel and Luke McKenzie still hold a slim lead over Cameron Brown and Patrick Vernay.

Likewise not much has changed in the women's line up as Bella Bayliss was not able to make up any ground on Ferguson who still commands a healthy lead. Lucie Zelonkova moves up into 5th equal position.

Ranking	Name	Points
1=	Luke McKenzie	80
1=	Tim Berkel	80
3	Cameron Brown	76
4	Patrick Vernay	75
5=	Tom Evans	60
5=	Andreas Raelert	60
5=	Marino Vanhoenacker	60
8	Petr Vabrousek	57
9=	Chris Lieto	30
9=	Bryan Rhodes	30
9=	Terenzo Bozzone	30
9=	Jason Shortis	30
9=	Jimmy Johnsen	30
9=	Pete Jacobs	30
9=	Torbjorn Sindballe	30
9=	Michael Gohner	30

Ranking	Name	Points
1	Gina Ferguson	133
2	Bella Bayliss	84
3	Chrissie Wellington	80
4	Belinda Granger	64
5=	Heleen Bij De Vaate	60
5=	Charlotte Paul	60
5=	Lucie Zelonkova	60
8	Joanna Lawn	37
9	Rebekah Keat	33
10=	Leanda Cave	30
10=	Tamara Kozulina	30
10=	Nicole Leder	30
10=	Rachel Joyce	30
10=	Sonia Tajsich	30

Ironman South Africa

2009-04-06T18:24:00.002+12:00

In our preview I labeled the men's race as "up for grabs" and Marino Vanhoenacker was the man to seize the day. He was far to strong on the swim and the bike for anyone else and cruised home for the victory in a new course record and with a huge winning margin of nearly 15 minutes. Michael Gohner had a strong day and was the only man to run under the 3 hour mark to take the runner-up position. The "racing machine" that is Petr Vabrousek grabbed another podium while defending champion Stephen Bayliss had to settle for 4th.

1	VANHOENACKER, Marino	9/1/1	32/Professional	00:47:48	04:25:09	03:01:31	08:17:32
2	GOHNER, Michael	20/5/2	28/Professional	00:52:41	04:36:48	02:59:14	08:32:01
3	VABROUSEK, Petr	18/7/3	35/Professional	00:52:20	04:38:11	03:01:21	08:36:07
4	BAYLISS, Stephen	5/13/4	30/Professional	00:47:38	04:48:39	03:07:43	08:47:26
5	VENHORST, Andreas	23/15/5	29/Professional	00:55:48	04:46:09	03:05:23	08:51:52
6	CUNNAMA, James	12/11/6	25/Professional	00:51:50	04:41:42	03:18:23	08:55:24
7	RAUDSEPP, Raimo	19/14/7	27/Professional	00:52:22	04:47:11	03:13:43	08:57:19
8	OLIVIER, Marceau	4/3/8	36/Professional	00:46:57	04:31:36	03:36:44	08:59:09
9	PEDRAZA, Sebastian	13/6/9	36/Professional	00:52:02	04:38:38	03:29:11	09:03:19
10	VAN LINGEN, Lawrence	3/10/11	37/Professional	00:46:56	04:44:27	03:41:28	09:17:16

I believed this race would come down to two women, Bella Bayliss and Andrea Brede and boy was I wrong as both were not able to finish the marathon. Lucie Zelonkova was the star of the day swimming with the lead men and then blitzing the field on the bike to claim her first ironman victory. Like Vanhoenacker she was able to cruise to victory on the run unchallenged, also smashing the course record. Sonia Tajsich had the fastest women's run split to run her way into second place while Rachel Joyce faded on the run, but managed to claim the last spot on the podium.

1	ZELENKOVA, Lucie	6/16/10	34/Professional	00:47:40	04:58:43	03:26:17	09:16:32
2	TAJSICH, Sonja	30/25/13	33/Professional	01:01:03	05:04:07	03:18:09	09:27:59
3	JOYCE, Rachel	16/17/16	30/Professional	00:52:18	05:02:31	03:37:36	09:37:00
4	GORDON, Jacqui	29/26/18	36/Professional	00:59:25	05:08:48	03:34:25	09:46:26
5	KOLL, Caroline	27/30/19	32/Professional	00:58:11	05:23:48	03:42:00	10:08:35
6	DUPONT, Anne-marie	35/32/21	35/Professional	01:05:09	05:27:39	03:36:24	10:13:40
7	BULEY, Helen	34/31/23	29/Professional	01:02:40	05:22:10	03:50:21	10:21:37

Ranking Tables after Ironman Australia

2009-04-05T18:46:00.002+12:00

In the men's standings young Aussie Tim Berkel moves into first equal position along side compatriot Luke McKenzie. Patrick Vernay moves into 4th position behind Cameron Brown.

On the women's side Kiwi Gina Ferguson is still well in the lead ahead of Bella Bayliss, however this could soon change with Bayliss racing Ironman South Africa. Chrissie Wellington moves into 3rd spot ahead of Belinda Granger.

Ranking	Name	Points
1=	Luke McKenzie	80
1=	Tim Berkel	80
3	Cameron Brown	76
4	Patrick Vernay	75
5=	Tom Evans	60
5=	Andreas Raelert	60
7	Petr Vabrousek	37
8=	Torbjorn Sindballe	30
8=	Chris Lieto	30
8=	Bryan Rhodes	30
8=	Terenzo Bozzone	30
8=	Jason Shortis	30
8=	Jimmy Johnsen	30
8=	Pete Jacobs	30
15	Jan Raphael	25

Ranking	Name	Points
1	Gina Ferguson	133
2	Bella Bayliss	84
3	Chrissie Wellington	80
4	Belinda Granger	64
5=	Heleen Bij De Vaate	60
5=	Charlotte Paul	60
7	Joanna Lawn	37
8	Rebekah Keat	33
9=	Nicole Leder	30
9=	Leanda Cave	30
9=	Tamara Kozulina	30
12	Sarah Pollet	25

Ironman Australia

2009-04-05T18:23:00.003+12:00

What a great race we had on our hands today. With all the main contenders coming off the bike close together, it was down to who could run the fastest. Patrick Vernay was all class in retaining his title. He was pushed hard by two Aussies, first by young Tim Berkel and later by Pete Jacobs. Vernay was able to pull away in the later stages of the marathon to win by nearly 5 minutes over Jacobs, with Berkel another 2 minutes further back.

1	Patrick, VERNAY	14/11/1	35/Pro	00:50:51	04:44:40	02:45:58	08:24:53
2	Pete, JACOBS	1/8/2	27/Pro	00:47:51	04:47:35	02:50:25	08:29:03
3	Tim, BERKEL	13/5/3	24/Pro	00:50:50	04:44:37	02:53:31	08:31:43
4	Jimmy, JOHNSEN	19/13/4	30/Pro	00:50:56	04:44:44	02:55:06	08:33:43
5	Maik, TWELSIEK	11/10/5	28/Pro	00:50:49	04:43:30	02:55:19	08:34:10
6	Timothy, DEBOOM	6/12/6	38/Pro	00:48:19	04:47:13	03:00:28	08:39:47
7	Simon, THOMPSON	3/6/7	31/Pro	00:48:12	04:47:02	03:03:09	08:42:21
8	Matt, WHITE	10/9/8	31/Pro	00:50:48	04:44:43	03:12:17	08:50:59
9	Chris, DMITRIEFF	29/20/9	30/Pro	00:56:54	05:02:05	02:50:20	08:53:06
10	Mitchell, ANDERSON	23/14/10	33/Pro	00:52:41	04:49:44	03:09:28	08:56:21

In contrast the women's race was not nearly as exciting. As predicted in our preview, Michellie Jones pulled out citing a head cold. This left the challengers to Chrissie Wellington sparse in-deed with Kate Bevilaqua also having to pull out with a stress fracture. Keat maintained contact in the swim and was 11 minutes behind after the bike leg, but Wellington was too quick on the run pulling away to win by nearly 25 minutes. There was much talk before hand as to whether Wellington would finish in the top 5 overall. In the end she finished 13th not quite as impressive as last year where she was 9th overall. As predicted though she did go under the 9 hour mark, posting a very impressive 8.57. Swiss athlete Caroline Steffen was a dark horse challenging Keat on the bike and she rounded out the podium.

1	Chrissie, WELLINGTON	9/15/11	32/Pro	00:50:48	05:03:01	02:59:15	08:57:10
2	Rebekah, KEAT	17/22/18	31/Pro	00:50:55	05:14:05	03:12:42	09:21:33
3	Caroline, STEFFEN	20/23/19	30/Pro	00:52:28	05:12:02	03:28:56	09:38:44
4	Abigail, BAYLEY	33/26/21	31/Pro	00:58:35	05:35:06	03:23:14	10:01:27
5	Sarah, POLLETT	12/25/23	28/Pro	00:50:50	05:41:31	03:27:32	10:04:23
6	Alison, COYLE	24/27/24	27/Pro	00:54:59	05:41:58	03:30:50	10:12:49

Ironman South Africa Preview

2009-03-22T18:14:00.003+13:00

The men's race looks to be quite exciting. There does not seem to be a clear favourite amongst the challenges. Stephen Bayliss the defending champion will be back a month after collecting a sixth place at Ironman New Zealand. Raynard Tissink will be looking to stop him however. He has had to settle for the runner-up position for the last two years, and will be determined to win in his home country. Others to watch for will be Petr Vabrousek (who will be lining up for his third iron distance event of the year), Marino Vanhoenacker (three time winner of Ironman Austria) and Olivier Maceau (who is more often seen on the xterra or triathlon circuit).

Professional Male

	LAST NAME	FIRST NAME
1.	Bayliss	Stephen
2.	Cunnama	James
3.	Domnik	Norbert
4.	Freeman	Bryn
5.	Fruehwirth	Alexander
6.	Gohner	Michael
7.	Gore	Glen
8.	Gray	Justin
9.	Johnson	Rob
10.	Klaus	Thomas
11.	Olivier	Marceau
12.	Pedraza	Sebastian
13.	Raudsepp	Raimo
14.	Schellens	Gerrit
15.	Schoissengeier	Peter
16.	Storm	Carl
17.	Storm	Brad
18.	Storm	Anton
19.	Tissink	Raynard
20.	Vabrousek	Petr
21.	Van Der Leeuw	Phillipe
22.	Van Lingen	Lawrence
23.	Vanhoenacker	Marino
24.	Venhorst	Andreas

In comparison, the women's race has two clear favourites in defending champion Bella Bayliss (formally Comerford) and Andrea Brede. Last year Bayliss and her new husband Stephen walked away with both titles and they will be looking to repeat that result in 2009. If she retains her title she will move to the top of the table ahead of Gina Ferguson. Brede is the 2006 Ironman Germany champion. She doesn't race often but when she does she has posted some very quick times. She is a strong athlete in all three disciplines and it will be hard to pick a winner between her and Bayliss. The main challenge to Bayliss and Brede will most likely come from Lucie Zelenkova. Zelonkova will be fresh from her 4th place finish at the Ironman Singapore 70.3 and will be looking to edge out Bayliss and Brede for the win to go with her Ironman South Africa 70.3 title.

Professional Female

	LAST NAME	FIRST NAME
1.	Bayliss	Bella
2.	Brede	Andrea
3.	Brewer	Jane
4.	Buley	Helen
5.	Cronje	Kathryn
6.	Daniel	Wilma
7.	Dupont	Anne-marie
8.	Gordon	Jacqui
9.	Joyce	Rachel
10.	Kinsley	Claire
11.	Koll	Caroline
12.	Tajsich	Sonja
13.	Zelenkova	Lucie

1	Luke McKenzie	190
2	Craig Alexander	170
3	Andreas Raelert	150
4	Chris Lieto	130
5	Petr Vabrousek	122
6	Marino Vanhoenacker	120
7	Rasmus Henning	110
8	Timo Bracht	105
9	Maik Twelsiek	100
10	Ronnie Schildknecht	94
11=	Stephen Bayliss	87
11=	Eduardo Stula	87
13=	Tim Berkel	80
13=	Jordan Rapp	80
13=	Raynard Tissink	80
13=	Chris McCormack	80
17	Bert Jaemmer	79
18	Cameron Brown	76
19	Patrick Vernay	75
20	Eneko Llanos Bruquera	70