KAILUA KONA, Hawaii – Three Central Oregon residents were among the 1,800 triathletes representing 51 countries at Saturday’s Ironman Triathlon World Championships. Steve Larsen, Roger Daniels and Lew Hollander, all of Bend, completed the grueling three-stage race in their respective categories.

According to results posted at ironmanlive.com, Larsen stormed to the top five in his 35-39 age division following the first stage of the race, the 112-mile cycling leg, but he fell to 40th place by the time the final stage – a 26.2-mile run – was complete. In a field of 257 competitors, Larsen, 35, was in the 19th position after the 2.4-mile ocean swim, which he completed in 1 hour, 1 minute and 36 seconds. Larsen was the fastest bike rider in his age division Saturday (4:41:57) and moved into fourth place entering the marathon, but he lost 36 spots during the run to complete the race in 9:43:32.

Daniels, 69, competing in his first-ever world championship triathlon, gradually improved his overall position after each stage of the race.

In a field of 23 finishers in the 65 to 69 age division, Daniels placed 13th with an overall time of 14:33: 18.

Daniels was in 21st position following the swim (2:00.55), but he pulled off the 10th-fastest marathon time in his age division (5:02:15).

Hollander, 75, competing in his 15th Hawaii Ironman, finished second in his 75 to 79 age division with an overall time of 15:51:20. Hollander kept a steady pace, maintaining a top-three position throughout the race.

Competing in a field of six competitors, the veteran triathlete was also competing against the 17-hour mark – the cutoff time for all athletes to finish the race. Hollander completed the swim in 1:47:14, the bike ride in 7:13:13, and the final marathon in 6:36:23.

Also completing the race were Robert McKeague, 80, of Villa Park, Ill., and Madonna Buder, 75, of Spokane, Wash., who became the oldest male and female finishers ever in the race and in so doing established new Ironman Triathlon World Championship age groups. McKeague finished in 16:21:55, Buder in 15:54:16.

Saturday’s top male finisher was Faris Al-Sultan, 27, of Germany, who finished the 140.6-mile endurance test in 8:14:17. Swiss competitor Natascha Badmann, 38, won her sixth Hawaii Ironman women’s title, with a time of 9:09:30.