The astonishing Peter Reid.

The astonishing Peter Reid.

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A talented athlete who gravitated to triathlon in his late teens, Peter Reid first tested the competitive waters in 1989. He experienced limited success initially, but after he teamed with coach Roch Frey in 1994, things really started to come together for the Montreal native.

 In the mid-90s he moved to Victoria to train year-round in the mild climate. His first win came in 1996 at the Wildflower triathlon in California, but the long-distance races were his real passion. That year he tackled Ironman Hawaii in Kona - the world championships - and turned heads with a fifth-place finish.

 He improved to fourth in 1997, the same year he won the first of three straight Australian Ironman titles. He struggled with health issues the following year and expected to compete in his final world championship. He was re-energized after reading a training article written by six-time world champion Mark Allen, and meeting the man, Reid won his first of three world titles by more than seven minutes that fall.

 His rebound earned him his first of four Triathlete Magazine triathlete of the year awards and Canada's male athlete of the year honours.

 One of the sport's top runners, he challenged annually at Kona. He won with a gutsy, come-from-behind effort in 2000, and bounced back from two injury-plagued seasons with his final win in 2003 at age 34.

 Upon retiring from active competition in 2006, Reid had amassed seven top-three finishes at the Ironman worlds, two Ironman Canada crowns and a place as this country's greatest male triathlete.