Monger breaks Ironman record for double amputee

Billy Monger is the youngest double amputee to complete the Ironman World Championships course

Former racing driver Billy Monger broke the Ironman record for a double amputee at the World Championship in Kona, Hawaii.

Monger, 25, completed the 226.3km (140.6 miles) course in 14 hours 23 minutes 56 seconds, more than two hours inside the previous record.

"That was the longest day of my life!" Monger told Comic Relief, the charity he completed the challenge for.

"I just felt so much love out on the course, that was really special.

"I am absolutely chuffed – it was a race I couldn’t have dreamed of. I hope you guys have loved the journey as much as I have."

Monger also said that he had been stung by a jellyfish during the swim and thanked his support team for helping him get through the gruelling course.

Monger completed the 3.8km swim in 1:07:29, the 180km cycle in 7:26:50 and the marathon run in 5:26:26.

Germany's Patrick Lange won the race in 7:35:53, knocking almost five minutes off Gustav Iden's 2022 course record to claim his third world title.

Monger's legs were amputated after he was involved in a near-fatal crash while racing at Donington Park in 2017.

He has since moved into broadcasting, featuring in the BBC series Celebrity Race Across the World and completing Billy's Big Challenge in 2021, when he walked, cycled and kayaked across Britain and raised more than £3m for Comic Relief.

One of his legs is amputated above the knee and the other below. His bike and prosthetics were modified to make riding and running more comfortable.

Monger said that when he began training he struggled to run 5km without feeling pain from his prosthetics.