An athlete died while competing in Saturday's Ironman U.S. Championship triathlon.

Officials said he "experienced distress'' during the swim portion of the race.

Despite receiving medical help on site, the competitor was later pronounced dead at Englewood Cliffs Hospital.

By Sunday morning an exact cause of death had not yet been determined.

About 2,500 athletes took part in the race, which covers more than 140 miles, starting with a 2.4 mile swim, followed by 112 miles of biking and a full marathon, finishing in Riverside Park.

Jordan Rapp finished first in the race with a time of 8 hours, 11 minutes.

Athletes told NY1 they loved running the race in New York but the humidity made the race even tougher.

"I think I went five miles before I got ice. I was like, 'I need to get ice,' that was really the big thing," Rapp said. "I just got to keep from overheating and I'll think I'll be able to keep it together."

"Palisades Park out there is gorgeous, lots of vistas and some hard hills though, and then running over the G.W. [George Washington] Bridge was iconic. I can't even explain that," said Mary Beth Ellis, the women's triathlon winner.

Officials were nearly forced to cancel the swim portion of the race because of a leaking sewage pipe in Westchester County.

It forced officials to dump chlorinated sewage into the Hudson but crews worked around the clock and were able to complete repairs on the pipe Friday.

Ironman officials concluded the Hudson was suitable for swimming after tests showed the water to be okay.