ATHLETES rose at the crack of dawn in order to make it to the starting line for Ironman Bolton 2021.

The atmosphere walking from Leigh Sports Village to Pennington Flash was electric - as hundreds of competitors made their way towards the waterside ahead of the big day.

The weather stayed dry for the swim section of the event, and the water was a tepid 20 degrees Celsius, according to the commentating team.

“What a pleasure it is to be back here in Bolton after two years,” said co-commentator Jay Luke.

“There are some incredible athletes out here today. It’s super Sunday down here at Pennington Flash.”

Louise Thomas was at the event cheering on her husband Carl Thomas, who was running for the Royal Navy. He was also being cheered on by kids Finn and Marnie.

She said: “It’s his first ever event and we’re all so proud of him.”

Mark Clarke, from Bolton, was among the athletes to take on yesterday’s gruelling challenge.

He had 40 per cent of his brain removed - and had to learn to read and talk again.

He is the only person with this type of injury to have ever competed in an Ironman competition.

The oldest competitor was 73-year-old Elizabeth Wilson, while the oldest male athlete was Barry Bennett, 71.

On the other end of the scale, 18-year-old Gareth Paul and Rosie Walsh, 22, also took to the water for the 6am start.

Athletes had 2 hours and 20 minutes to complete the swim section.

Michael Vilen-Letts has just finished his second degree in medicine and will be starting as a doctor in Carlisle in three weeks time, however, he has also been training the last year to achieve completing his first Ironman in Bolton.

His mother, Charlotte Vilen, could not be at the event, but said: “We are not able to be there and cheer him on, but we hope others in the crowd will be doing this.”

Safety teams were out and about in their canoes, ensuring everyone completed the swim safely.

Eight elite male athletes set off at the starting line, including British Olympian Tim Don.

They were followed in quick succession by the three professional female athletes. Waves of age group athletes then followed suit.

Over 1,000 spectators gathered to support the athletes.

The 2.4 mile swim was over in a flash, with Frenchman Sam Laidlow first out of the water in a rapid time of 47:08. Thomas Davis came through 14 seconds after him, with Elliot Smales hot on his heels.

Eventual race winner Joe Skipper trailed by more than a minute heading into the cycle leg.

In the women’s race, Katrina Matthews stormed through in a time of 55:53.

The race was extremely close at this point, with Nikki Bartlett only five seconds behind, and third-place Chantal Cummings trailing by a further 12 seconds.