KEY POINTS:
Cameron Brown will look to extend a remarkable record when he defends his Ironman New Zealand title in Taupo in March.
Brown, 36, is chasing his eighth victory in the race, a qualifying event for the ironman world championships in Hawaii.
He is the only male to have
won the same Ironman race more than six times, last year passing a mark established by sporting legends Dave Scott and Mark Allen in Hawaii.
However, Brown is quick to point out he would trade all his wins for one victory in Hawaii where he has been on the podium three times but never atop the victory dais.
"Ironman New Zealand is a key race for me and I have been privileged to win it seven times," Brown said.
"This one is going to be very special as the 25th anniversary and I'd love to win it again.
"I know the field will be strong and I've just got to concentrate on the really big mileage in training right now.
"I'm doing around 35 hours a week right now so it's in the really tough training phase."
Brown and last year's second-placed Kieran Doe have both confirmed their entry to this year's 25th anniversary race on March 7.
Brown has amassed a remarkable career in endurance triathlon, with eight wins and 20 podium placings in official Ironman events around the globe over a decade, including second placing in Hawaii in 2001, and third in 2002 and 2003.
His last two years have been frustrated by foot injuries, ironically at a time when he and coach Brendan Cameron have worked hard on improving his bike strength to better tackle the might of European athletes at Hawaii.
Brown showed he was well over any injury concerns when finishing second at the recent Port of Tauranga half ironman despite a time-consuming puncture on the bike.
Doe, 27, is looming as a major threat as he looks to go one better than last year.
He is renowned as a huge trainer but his plan to race more often this summer was thwarted when he was forced to run barefoot at Ironman Arizona in December after shoe issues and then limped home in the defence of his Port of Tauranga half ironman crown this month with a stomach complaint.
However, he is back into top quality training and keen to show that his brilliant runaway victory at Ironman Canada in 2007 was not an aberration.
"It's been a bit frustrating especially when you do all the hard work and something happens on race day," Doe said.
" I'm really happy where my training is at right now but there's still a few very big weeks of mileage to go before I start to taper for Taupo."
There will be surprises surrounding his tactics in March.
"My strength is my swim and my bike so I will just go for it again and see if I can build enough of a buffer for the run."
The seeds for the men's race will be announced next week when the elite field is finalised.
- NZPA