Faris Al-Sultan
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Faris al-Sultan is a professional triathlete from Germany, and the winner of the 2005 Ironman Triathlon in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii. He was born in Munich, in 1978 to a German mother and an Iraqi father. He is known for a calm but serious attitude; an open mouth rather than a grimace, folding his hands while in the aero position, and racing always in a speedo.
In addition to his athletic training, Faris al-Sultan is a graduate student at Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, working towards a Master's degree in Arabic language, literature, and history.
Faris started out as a swimmer before taking on triathlon. His first Ironman 1997 was the notoriously difficult bike course of IM Lanzarote in a time of 10:33. He competed at the Ironman world championships in Hawaii in 1999, 2001, 2003, 2004 before finally winning there in 2005. Some critics will point out that the favorite that year Normann Stadler withdrew due to flat tires. In his return to defend the title in 2006 he was surrounded by the media allowing the would-be champion to fly under the radar.
His sponsors include Asics (apparel) Cannondale (bike) and PowerBar (nutrition).
This biographical article relating to German athletics (track and field) is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it.| Preceded by Normann Stadler |
Ironman Triathlon World Champion (Mens) 2005 |
Succeeded by Normann Stadler |
