Luxembourg's Dirk Bockel (Uplace-BMC) won the Ironman Melbourne. He won a strong race, which also marked the Asia-Pacific Ironman Championship, ahead of Australia's Paul Matthews and David Dellow.
Bockel thus celebrated an optimal start to the season. Already in swimming he managed to stay in the leading group. On the bike he was able to assert himself behind the top duo Axel Zeebroeck and Dellow and switched to running shoes in third place. Here he let the leaders hold their position until 35km before launching his attack and finally reaching the finish line a minute ahead of the remaining competitors.
Result
1. Dirk Bockel (Luxembourg) 08:01:02
2. Paul Matthews (Australia) 08:02:14
3. David Dellow (Australia) 08:03:07