Burns survivor completes Hawaiian Ironman

Inspiring burns survivor Turia Pitt has finished her debut Hawaiian Ironman triathlon.

The 29-year-old Australian completed the 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42.2km marathon run event in 14 hours 37 minutes 30 seconds, finishing after dark on Sunday at the town of Kailua-Kona.

It is five years and 200 operations since Pitt suffered burns to 65 per cent of her body in a WA bushfire.

Pitt was competing in an ultramarathon when the fire nearly killed her.

Severe injuries to her hands mean Pitt has custom-made gear and brake levers on her bike.

The burns have left Pitt unable to regulate her body temperature.

So she wore special race clothing to cope with the severe heat and humidity that are features of the Hawaiian Ironman.

This is Pitt's second Ironman-distance triathlon finish, following the Ironman Australia race in May at Port Macquarie.

Hawaii featured a record 2300 starters this year.German Jan Frodeno won the men's professional race in eight hours six minutes, while age groupers had 17 hours to finish.