BRIAN Fogarty admitted it was a ‘dream come true’ to win the Ironman UK – now he has set his sights on completing the coveted treble.

The 35-year-old wants to win the prestigious first amateur title at the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii in October to cap a memorable year.

The Blackburn endurance athlete was first amateur at Ironman Lanzarote in May – where he was 11th place overall – before crossing the line first in Bolton last weekend to claim his first Ironman UK title.

Fogarty clocked a combined time of 9 hours 27 minutes 12 seconds to beat his nearest rival, Italy’s Francesca Masciarelli, by more than 10 minutes – despite running the marathon leg of the event with a foot injury.

But he was happy to go through the pain barrier to achieve his goal.

“I’ve been doing this for eight years and winning the Ironman UK has always been my dream,” said

Fogarty.

“I’ve seen other athletes cross the line first cheered on by all the spectators and I have always wanted that for myself.

“It was a bit surreal and it took a while to sink it but I made the most of all those fans cheering me home, I was happy to give high fives to whoever wanted them!”

Fogarty was cheered on by friends and family, including brothers Phil and Richard and sister Eve and it proved to be an emotional event as he dedicated the victory to his uncle Brian who lost his fight against cancer.

“My uncle supported me in everything I did and he was always there to cheer me on,” he added. “Two years ago when he was really ill, I said I would come back and win the race for him and I have done that.

“I had a t-shirt made with the two of us on it and pulled it on after crossing the line. It was very emotional but I am so pleased I managed to win it for him.”

Fogarty completed the 2.4 mile swim in 59mins 50secs, the bike ride in 5hrs 11mins 2secs and ran the marathon in 3hrs 10mins 6secs.

Two years ago, Fogarty set a new course record on the bike but admitted this year’s new route was the toughest he has encountered in the Ironman which probably led to his foot injury.

“I was happy with my swim, if I can complete it under an hour I know I will always be in contention as I back myself on the bike and the run,” he said.

“The bike race was probably the toughest Ironman course I have done. It was very technical and a lot of climbing and even on the downhills you could not really recover as it was very tricky.

“Then you had to cope with the back markers when on the later laps so that was something you always had to be wary of.

“As soon as I got off the bike I felt something in my foot and it troubled me right from the off.

“I had a decent lead but the Italian lad made up a bit of time very quickly so I had to be wary of him.

“The third lap for me was the toughest but I knew it was mine to lose so I just had to stay focused. You always want to do certain things better and go faster but it was all about the victory and I was over the moon.”

Fogarty will now turn his attention to the Ironman World Championships in Kona, Hawaii and he would love to complete the hat-trick.

“I’m going to prepare as best as I can as I’d love to be first amateur and that would be a great hat-trick to have following my successes in Lanzarote and in Bolton,” added Fogarty who works in the family insurance business with his brothers.

“I’ve been to Hawaii five times before but I have never managed to get to grips with the heat.

“I probably have not done myself justice over the years so I definitely have unfinished business.”

Fogarty, who also coaches athletes, will keep ticking over for the next few weeks before stepping up his

preparation.

“I’ll probably do a 100-mile time trial in Staffordshire and compete in the Sundowner half Ironman in Ripon which I won last year,” said the former Lancashire Telegraph advertising rep.

“It will all be about training and preparing specifically for Hawaii.

“The heat and humidity over there is incredible but, just as bad, are the strong winds. There is a serious chance you can get blown off your bike, so much so that you are not allowed disc wheels. So those are all things that have to be factored in.

“It would be great to go away and do some warm weather training but we will have to wait and see if the finances stretch that far!”

* Brian Fogarty is looking for new sponsors and anyone interested should ring 07950 033177 or email foggi8@hotmail.co.uk