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A man from Eccleston, Chorley has beat off all others to be crowned the winner of an international Ironman race in Cork.

Tom Rigby, aged 33, works at Leyland Trucks but has been competing in triathlon events for the last seven years.

On August 14, Tom landed his biggest win to date at Ironman Ireland 70.3 in Cork, where he won the race by over 16 minutes with a strong all round performance finishing in 4:04:25.

Tom trains alongside being a husband and father, and says he is lucky to have a wife and daughters who are “so incredibly proud”.

Chorley's Tom Rigby wins Ironman 70.3 Cork despite being a fulltime working dad.

He also has “a great family support system which are always on hand to help out”, and the support of the tri Preston triathlon club, which Tom trains with on a regular basis.

Tom said: “The event was amazing all the locals really get behind it and its one big party atmosphere for the whole weekend. My daughters took part in the ironkids on the Friday, then I raced on the Sunday and my fellow tri-Preston team mates raced the full on the Sunday, so it was great to spectate too. Next up for me is Ironman Wales in Tenby on the 11th of September”.

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An Ironman 70.3 is one of a series of long-distance triathlon races organized by the World Triathlon Corporation.

Tom's wife Kerry, and their daughters, were there to watch the race.

The ‘70.3’ refers to the total distance in miles covered in the race, consisting of a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike ride, and a 13.1-mile run.

Tom’s athletic achievements have gained the Post’s attention before, read about his previous success here.

Chorley dad proves his athletic prowess winning Ironman Ireland 70.3 by a long stretch