Thousands of athletes swim, bike and run in the New York City Triathlon

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Thousands of athletes got a whirlwind tour of Manhattan and the Bronx Sunday by swimming, biking, and hitting the pavement in the New York City Triathlon.

The grueling test of endurance began with athletes taking a dive in the Hudson River just before 6 a.m.

They embarked on a swim of just under a mile before bicycling about 25 miles along the West Side Highway.

The event finished with a 6 mile run to the finish line in Central Park.

Cameron Dye of Boulder, CO won the male professional division in 1:45:10 and Lauren Goss of Boulder, CO won the female professional division in 1:56:54.

34 professional triathletes participated in the event, which offered a $30,000 prize purse.

For the sixth consecutive year, the Challenged Athletes International Championship was held during the race and a prize purse of $5,000 was awarded to the top three physically challenged triathletes.

The 2XU New York City Triathlon, the only Olympic distance triathlon in New York City, is part of the The 2017 Life Time TriSM Series, which includes eight triathlons across the country between April and October.