University of St. Thomas Athletics
Alum Annamarie Strehlow hits PR at Ironman World Championships
10/7/2022 12:23:00 PM | Athletics, Women's Soccer
Kailua-Kona, Hawaii - St. Thomas graduate and former Tommie student-athlete Annamarie Strehlow recorded a career-best triathlon performance Thursday in the 2022 Ironman World Championships.
Among all the non-professional athletes, in a field of 1,167 women's finishers, the Shorewood, Wis., resident placed third overall and was the first American to the finish line.
Competing in just her second World Championship, Strehlow took second in her age group and clocked 9:42:17 -- a personal best in what was her third 140.6-mile Ironman competition. Her previous best time was 9:56:52 posted 11 weeks ago at the Ironman Lake Placid where she was the top overall female finisher.
That time helped her reach her pre-race goal of a top-five age-group showing. She clocked 63:08 for the 2.4-mile swim; 5:15:09 on the bike for the 112 miles; and 3:16.59 for the 26.2-mile run.
Strehlow, 32, qualified for this week's Worlds event by winning the Wisconsin Ironman race in fall 2021. She has only been competing in triathlon events since 2018. She discovered the sport after a leg injury she suffered while training for a running race took her into pool therapy, which sparked an interest in swimming training. She has quickly emerged as one of the top American competitors, and plans to turn professional in 2023.
Her time on Thursday was topped by just 24 female professionals, including only five Americans.
Strehlow was a Tommie Women's Soccer captain and played for Coach Sheila McGill's teams from 2009-2012. She later received a doctoral degree in Physical Therapy at the College of St. Scholastica. She works full time as a physical therapist at Froedtert Hospital near her hometown of Milwaukee, in the orthopedic clinic.
(Watch Tommisports.com for an upcoming longer feature story on Strehlow's Ironman career and St. Thomas memories).
Among all the non-professional athletes, in a field of 1,167 women's finishers, the Shorewood, Wis., resident placed third overall and was the first American to the finish line.
Competing in just her second World Championship, Strehlow took second in her age group and clocked 9:42:17 -- a personal best in what was her third 140.6-mile Ironman competition. Her previous best time was 9:56:52 posted 11 weeks ago at the Ironman Lake Placid where she was the top overall female finisher.
That time helped her reach her pre-race goal of a top-five age-group showing. She clocked 63:08 for the 2.4-mile swim; 5:15:09 on the bike for the 112 miles; and 3:16.59 for the 26.2-mile run.
Strehlow, 32, qualified for this week's Worlds event by winning the Wisconsin Ironman race in fall 2021. She has only been competing in triathlon events since 2018. She discovered the sport after a leg injury she suffered while training for a running race took her into pool therapy, which sparked an interest in swimming training. She has quickly emerged as one of the top American competitors, and plans to turn professional in 2023.
Her time on Thursday was topped by just 24 female professionals, including only five Americans.
Strehlow was a Tommie Women's Soccer captain and played for Coach Sheila McGill's teams from 2009-2012. She later received a doctoral degree in Physical Therapy at the College of St. Scholastica. She works full time as a physical therapist at Froedtert Hospital near her hometown of Milwaukee, in the orthopedic clinic.
(Watch Tommisports.com for an upcoming longer feature story on Strehlow's Ironman career and St. Thomas memories).
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