Hi guys,
I just wanted to give you a quick update on my immediate race schedule leading into the Ironman World Championships in Kona.
With the new Kona points qualification schedule no one was really sure how each athlete would go about qualifying for the World Champs. I was sure if I had a few solid races under my belt I would make the cut off no problem, but with the achilles problem I haven't been able to do all the races I wanted to race and get the results I had aimed for. That being said I have still had a pretty good season. 20th in Kona last year, 2nd at Ironman New Zealand, 4th at the US 70.3 champs, 5th at the New Orleans 70.3 (high points race), and 9th at the Eagleman 70.3. Outside of the World Triathlon Corporation races that count for points I finished 2nd at the Rev 3 Half Ironman and 2nd at the Kemah Olympic distance triathlon.
The top 50 male athletes on points will compete in Kona. At the end of July the top 40 men were given their spots and at the end of August the next 10 qualifying athletes will be selected. Currently I am sitting in 50th position, but with 3 full distance ironman races and 3 more 70.3 races in the month of August other athletes will move forward on points and there is not much of a guarantee I will make the cut off.
This is part of the reason why I have decided to compete at the European 70.3 Champs next weekend in Wiesbaden, Germany. The points on offer are high but with the large points and the prestige of being the European Champion comes a large number of the best athletes in the sport racing. Hopefully I will be able to get a solid result and secure my spot for Kona
Training the past couple weeks in Switzerland has been great… Tough but great… Oh yeah, and also at altitude. We had a camp with one of my sponsors, Biestmilch in St. Moritz, then a few days in Davos with the Swiss triathlon team. I have never ridden hills so long and suffered so much in all of my life. Coming back down to a normal altitude earlier than expected was a smart move and I am starting to feel ready to race.
Anyway, I will report in after the weekend.
Regards
Terenzo
