From race press release.

MADISON, WI - Defending champion Heather Gollnick is among the top female competitors scheduled to compete in the 2003 Ironman Wisconsin triathlon, taking place this Sunday, Sept. 7 in Madison and surrounding Dane County.

Gollnick, of Hartford, WI, has burst onto the professional triathlon scene in very impressive fashion, winning the first two Ironman events that she has competed in as a pro.

Gollnick posted the first Ironman victory of her career at the inaugural Ironman Wisconsin last September. Gollnick's overall time of 9 hours, 54 minutes and 54 seconds was more than 18 minutes faster than second-place finisher Yoko Okuda of Japan.

Most recently, Gollnick overcame brutal weather conditions to claim the Ironman USA Coeur d'Alene women's title in June of 2003. The 33-year-old also claimed the overall title at California's Wildflower Triathlon in early May 2003.

Gollnick was the 2000 International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Duathlon Champion in 2000 (Women 30-34) and the 2001 ITU World Triathlon Champion (Women 30-34) and was the second-overall finisher among women at the 2000 USAT National Triathlon Championship.

The women's field also features Ironman standouts Mary Uhl (Santa Fe, NM), Sherri Fraser (Canada) and Claudia Hille (Germany). All hope to challenge Gollnick for the women's title at Ironman Wisconsin.

Uhl has posted three top-five finishes at Ironman North America events over the past four years. The 37-year-old posted the fastest finish time of her career in August of 2002 (9:41:26), finishing third at Subaru Ironman Canada. Uhl has also been in the top five at HSBC Ironman USA Lake Placid twice, finishing fifth in 2000 and second in 1999, her career best overall finish at an Ironman event.

Fraser has posted five top-10 Ironman finishes the past four years including a career best second-place finish at Ironman Florida in 1999. Fraser led for much of the inaugural event in Panama City Beach before being passed on the run by Germany's Katja Mayer, finishing the event in a time of 10:01:00. Most recently, Fraser finished fourth at the 2002 Ironman Florida triathlon last November.

Much like Fraser, Hille is a long-time Ironman competitor and has posted five top-10 Ironman finishes in her career. Most recently, she finished seventh at Ironman France in 2002.

Two other competitors who could challenge for the Ironman Wisconsin title are Lori-Lynn Leach (Spain) and Desiree Ficker (Boulder, CO.) Leach has three top-three Ironman finishes in her career, including a pair at Subaru Ironman Canada.

Ficker finished third at the Wildflower triathlon this year, and could surprise in her first Ironman as a professional.

More than 1,800 athletes from around the world are expected to compete at Ironman Wisconsin.

Athletes are competing for a $25,000 pro prize purse, as well as 80 qualifying spots for the 2004 Ironman World Championship in Kona, HI in October. The event is one of only four Ironman events in the continental United States.

For more information on Ironman Wisconsin, log onto www.ironmanwisconsin.com.