Mark Allen (triathlete)

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Mark Allen (born 1957 or 1958) is a triathlete, and as of 2006 he is one of two athletes to have won the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii six times.

Allen became a triathlete in 1982, after seeing Julie Moss fall, while leading the Ironman race meters short of the finish line and crawl across after being overtaken. He cites her example as what led him to train for the event.

Before his first win in the Ironman in 1989, Allen had been touted as the best athlete never to win the race, being virtually unbeatable in other long distance triathlons at the time. By this stage he had won the then prestigious Nice long distance triathlon 6 times (he eventually won it 10 times in a row), but due to injury, illness and being beaten by a more experienced athlete (Dave Scott), he had an extended period of "paying his dues" (a belief that ironman triathletes need to make several journeys to the big island before they can win) to the Hawaiian goddess Pele.

The 1989 race included a close battle between Dave Scott (then aged 36) and Allen (at 31), which is still referred to as "The Iron War". Over the course of the 8-hour race, the two were never more than a few seconds apart, until Allen broke away from Scott in the final marathon, with just two miles remaining. His marathon time was 2:40:04, a record that stands as of 2006. They both improved on Scott's track record by remarkable margins of around 19 minutes, with Scott finishing 58 seconds behind. This race is described as the end of Scott's domination of the sport and the start of Allen's.

For Allen, that race began what became his male-record, 1989 through 1993, run of five consecutive wins at Hawaii.

In 1995, at age 37, he won his retirement race at Hawaii, his six titles there matching those of Scott. In this race, he chased down German Thomas Hellriegel who had an unprecedented 13 minute lead after the bike leg and in so doing also beat defending champion Greg Welch from Australia. 1995 is considered one of the most entertatining battles in the men's race alongside Allen's first win in 1989 and a big "marathon" battle in 1993 with Pauli Kiuru.

As a triathlete, Allen had virtually no weakness - initially coming from a swimming background - although his run leg typically proved to be the difference between him and the rest of the world.

Allen's ex-wife is Julie Moss, the triathlete who initially inspired him. Today Allen shares his triathlon training experience and coaches triathletes from around the world via his web site markallenonline.com

Preceded by Greg Welch	Ironman Triathlon World Champion (Mens) 1995	Succeeded by Luc Van Lierde
Preceded by Scott Molina	Ironman Triathlon World Champion (Mens) 1989-1993	Succeeded by Greg Welch