Ultraman World Championships swim start Friday, Nov. 25 at Kailua Bay. (Hawaii 24/7 photo by Karin Stanton)

Karin Stanton | Hawaii 24/7 Editor

Jonas Colting combined a great swim and bike leg Friday to take the lead in the 27th annual Ultraman World Championships.

He was second out of the swim, with a time of 2 hours, 20 minutes and 23 seconds, and lit out on the bike finishing the day with a total time of 7:15:50.

Mike Coughlin, who was 11th out of the water, had the day’s fastest bike split of 4:50:19 and sits in second place overall at 7:46:58.

Alexandre Riberio sits third with Rich Roll in fourth.

Amber Monforte, who set the women’s course record last year, was first woman to complete the swim in 2:54:58 and finished the day at 8:20:31. She is the leading woman and 7th overall.

Alice Robb trails Monforte by more than 1 hour.

The Ultraman World Championships cover a total distance of 320 miles (515 kilometers), around the Big Island and require each athlete to complete a 6.2 mile (10 K) open ocean swim, a 261.4 mile (421 K) cross-country bike ride, and a 52.4 mile (84K) ultra-marathon run.

Day 1 – 6.2-mile (10 km) ocean swim from Kailua Bay to Keauhou Bay, followed by a 90-mile (145 km) cross-country bike ride from Keauhou Bay around the southern tip of the island via Route 11 to finish at Namakani Paio Park in the Volcanoes National Park. Vertical climbs total 7,600 feet.

Day 2 – 171.4-mi (276 km) bike ride, from Volcanoes National Park (Route 11) to Keaau, then turning east with a counter-clockwise loop through Kalapana, Kapoho and Pahoa, then on through the City of Hilo. From Hilo, the route continues north along the Hamakua Coast (Route 19) to Waimea, and over the Kohala Mountains via Route 250 to finish at the Kohala Village Inn on Hawi Road, just above its junction with Route 270. Vertical climbs total 8,600 feet.

Day 3 – 52.4-mile (84 km) double-marathon run from Hawi to Kawaihae (Route 270), then on to Kailua-Kona (via Route 19) and finishing on the beach at the Old Airport State Park.

Time Limits: Each stage must be completed in 12 hours or less. The swim should be completed in 5-1/2 hours or less. Participants not reaching the respective finish lines within the 12 hour limits will be disqualified.

The race is limited to 40 athletes, with participants this year from Australia, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, England, Germany, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Japan, Puerto Rico, and the United States. More than 50 percent of the field will have participated in at least one previous Ultraman.

Each must be accompanied by an individual support team of at least two persons over the entire course. Many of these team members volunteer from the Big Island community each year.

The event attracts individuals who not only thrive on personal challenge and enjoy the thrill of victory, but who come to understand, as did the ancient Hawaiians, the importance of aloha (love), ohana (family), and kokua (help). Individual resources, mental, physical, and spiritual, are shared in an atmosphere where everyone who completes the course is a winner, and the pursuit of human excellence is the fundamental rule of the road.

— Find out more:
www.ultramanlive.com