Courtesy: USAT
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Tim DeBoom of Lyons, Colo., won the elite men's race at the 23rd Ironman World Championship Triathlon, on Saturday in Kailua Kona, Hawaii.

DeBoom, who finished second at Ironman Hawaii last year, completed the 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike and 26.2-mile run in 8 hours, 31 minutes, 18 seconds. He is the first American man to win the title since Mark Allen won in 1995. DeBoom's wife, Nicole, was 13th in the women's elite race. His brother, Tony, did not finish.

Paula Newby-Fraser (Encinitas, Calif.) was the top U.S. finisher on the elite women's side, placing fourth in 9:41:35. Karen Smyers (Lincoln, Mass.), the U.S. national Olympic distance champion, placed fifth in 9:48:34. Newby-Fraser, an eight-time winner of the event, is 39 and Smyers recently turned 40. Natascha Badmann of Switzerland won the women's event in 9:28:37.

DeBoom, who had to overcome a 3-minute penalty for drafting on the bike, crossed the line waving an American flag as the crowd chanted "U- S-A, U-S-A."

"It was very motivating. The crowd was very unbelievable," DeBoom told IronmanLive.com. "I didn't get very many 'Go Tims' it was more 'Go USA,' and that motivates me. I'm very country-oriented, and very loyal to my country, and it's awesome when people are cheering for you."

World champion mountain biker Steve Larsen (Davis, Calif.), competing in his first Hawaii Ironman, led the race after the bike, but was run down by DeBoom and others and eventually finished ninth. Cameron Widoff (Boulder, Colo.) placed eighth.

Olympian Ryan Bolton finished 28th among the men while Olympian Joanna Zeiger did not finish the women's race.

Brigitte Egbert (Honolulu, Hawaii), 30, finished first among the female age groupers in 10:25:04. Tom Soderdahl of Finland, competing in the 25-29 category, finished first among the male age groupers in 9:11:47.