Pittsburgh, October 13, 2008 -- Joseph Maroon, MD, clinical professor of neurosurgery and Heindl Scholar in Neuroscience at the University of Pittsburgh, finished 19th in his division in the grueling Hawaiian Ford Ironman World Championship Triathlon held October 11 in Kona, Hawaii.

Dr. Maroon finished with a time of 15 hours, 57 minutes and 20 seconds in what is considered the crown jewel of international triathlons. The event -- one of the most recognized endurance events in the world -- consists of a 2.4 mile ocean swim, a 112 mile bike race and a 26.2 mile marathon.

The 68-year-old, long-time team neurosurgeon for the Pittsburgh Steelers, completed his swim in a time of 1:56:11; the bike portion in a time of 7:18:41 and then ran the marathon in a time of 6:19:49.

(left to right), Dr. Maroon at swim finish, during bike portion, during marathon and at finish of Ironman. (Click image for larger view.)

He qualified for the Hawaiian race by finishing fifth in the 65-70 age group category in a half-ironman distance race qualifier held in Muncie, IN, in July.

Dr. Maroon has completed over 60 triathlon events of the Olympic distance category (.9 mile swim, 25 mile bike, 6.2 mile run) and five previous Ironman distance events.

Five years ago, after participating in the Hawaiian event he injured his knee and was told that an artificial knee replacement would be needed, thus ending his competitive days. He later met Christopher Centeno, MD, who was experimenting with stem cell transplantation in patients with hip and knee osteoarthritis. Dr. Maroon elected to have the transplants in his knee and has subsequently returned to triathlon competition.

Dr. Maroon is an active neurosurgeon performing over 400 brain and spinal operations per year. He also is chairman of the General Nutrition Corporation’s (GNC) scientific advisory board. In this capacity he works closely with Guru Ramanathan, MD, chief scientific officer for GNC in evaluating and introducing new nutraceutical products into the GNC line. He also is a member of the board of directors of Mylan Laboratories, the third largest generic pharmaceutical company in the world.

For the last several years, Dr. Maroon has conducted research into the various ways of enhancing the quality and length of life. In December, Simon and Schuster will publish his book on the topic entitled, The Longevity Factor—How Red Wine and Resveratrol Activate Longevity Genes for a Healthier and Longer Life.

This past June, he was elected senior vice president of the 20,000+ member American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine.