KAILUA-KONA, Hawaii — Chrissie Wellington said the help she received from a fellow competitor on the way to her second consecutive Ironman Triathlon World Championship women's title "epitomizes everything great about the Ironman."

The 31-year-old triathlete from Britain had a lead of about 5 minutes when her tire went flat near the 90-mile mark of the 112-mile bicycle ride. Air canisters she carried didn't work, she said, but Rebekah Keat of Australia came to the rescue.

Keat stopped, gave Wellington another canister, and the defending champion was on her way again. It cost her about 10 minutes and the lead, which she quickly regained and held throughout the marathon run.

"Without it, I wouldn't have finished or would have finished way back with the age-groupers," she said.

Her winning time Saturday was 9 hours, 6 minutes, 23 seconds. Yvonne Van Vlerken of Austria was second in 9:21:20.

Craig Alexander of Australia came from behind to win the men's title in 8:17:45.

The 35-year-old from Sydney was 11th at the end of the bike ride, but ran a strong marathon to take the lead shortly after the 18-mile mark.

He said he drew on the support from former champions Dave Scott, Mark Allen and Scott Tinley, who encouraged him from the sidelines along the way.

"It was a thrill to see those guys out there," said Alexander, second last year in his first Hawaii Ironman attempt.

The weather was much worse than last year, with the athletes having to deal with choppy seas in the 2.4-mile swim, gusty crosswind on the bike and heat from the sunduring both the bike and the run.

"It was a hard race," Alexander said. "But I was prepared for a hard day and had trained for wind."

"I was getting blown across the road," Wellington said. "It was tough out there."

Returning after winning in her first try last year was not a burden, Wellington said.

"For some, the crown is hea vy, but for me it is light as a feather and has lifted me up," she said.

Defending champion Chris McCormack of Australia wasn't as fortunate as Wellington. A gear cable on his bike snapped, and he dropped out when technicians told him repairs would take 20 minutes.

A total of 1,731 triathletes, mostly age-group amateurs, began the Ironman's 30th anniversary race, and 1,634 finished.

Others in the top ten were Eneko Llanos, Spain, 8:20:50; Rutger Beke, Belgium, 8:21:23; Ronnie Schildknecht, Switzerland, 8:21:46; Cameron Brown, New Zealand, 8:26:17; Patrick Vernay, France, 8:30:23; Andy Potts, Colorado Springs, Colo., 8:33:50; Mathias Hecht, Switzerland, 8:34:02; Michael Lovato, Boulder, Colo., 8:34:47; and Eduardo Sturla, Argentina, 8:36:53.

The women's top finishers also included Sandra Wallenhorst, Germany, 9:22:52; Erika Csomor, Hungary; 9:24:49; Linsey Corbin, Missoula, Montana, 9:28:51, Virginia Berasategui, Spain, 9:29:15; Bella Comerford, Great Britain, 9:34:08; Gina Ferguson, New Zealand, 9:36:53; Gina Kehr, Redwood City, Calif., 9:37:06; and Dede Griesbauer, Boston, 9:39:53.

SUNGLASSES AUCTIONED FOR BREAST CANCER RESEARCH

Wellington has auctioned off the sunglasses she wore during this weekend's race to benefit breast cancer research.

The glasses netted $300, and another anonymous donor said he would match that amount.

The 31-year-old says she's happy to make a contribution during breast cancer awareness month.

Wellington's grandmother died nine weeks before she defended her title in the sport's world championship.

Wellington says she feels proud and privileged to be able to help, and her grandmother would be too.