Steffen resets the bar for herself

Caroline Steffen has just thrown down the gauntlet to every other pro woman. With her emphatic victory at Ironman Melbourne, the Swiss athlete has reset the bar for herself - and her peers.

Steffen is now the second fastest Ironwomen on the planet with the fifth fastest time. Chrissie Wellington holds the four fastest times for Iron distance races.

In Melbourne, Steffen went 8:34:51 (53:29, 4:44:57, 3:01:22). That's almost half an hour faster than her previous best time for an Ironman.

In Kona 2011 she finished fifth in 9:07:32 (57:15, 4:50:26, 3:15:17). Earlier in the season she won Ironman races in Frankfurt in 9:12 and in Port Macquarie in 9:29.

A year earlier in Kona she was second in 9:06 (55:57, 4:59:22, 3:05:47) - her PB at the distance until yesterday.

Steffen was a competitive swimmer for 10 years, then a member of a pro cycling team for two years before switching to triathlon.