3 minute read

Conquering the world’s hardest triathlon

By Samantha Elley Ballina

man, Jon Rigley has recently achieved a huge bucket list item, having competed in the Iron Man World Championships in Nice, France.

“As a kid, I used to watch the Wide World of Sports and they would always show the Iron Man races,” said Jon.

“I always wanted to get into it.”

As a family, with his sister, Adene, Jon would run triathlons and this has continued throughout his life.

This time, however, he decided to aim high.

“A big thing for me was raising money for charity,” said Jon.

“A mate from school and football is involved with the Variety Children’s Charity in Tasmania and I thought, ‘Let’s have a go at this’.”

Having qualified for the World Championships after competing in Cairns, Jon knew he would be upping his training to be able to compete in Nice.

“In the first week I was doing about eight hours of training,” he said.

“This increased to 13-15 hours a week with biking half of it, then running about 30 per cent and swimming 20 per cent.”

As the date of the race drew near, Jon blogged about his training regime and promoted the Variety Children’s Charity every chance he got.

“It felt weird putting myself out there,” he said.

“I was pretty uncomfortable but I was raising money and people responded without shooting me down.”

Finally, it was race day and Jon faced each leg of the triathlon with his characteristic sense of humour, even promoting the Evans Head Surf Life Saving Club by swimming in the club shorts.

“During the swim, it was amazing, as it was in the Mediterranean,” he said.

“It was so clear and about a kilometre out you are looking at the mountains and seeing where your life got to.”

In his blog Jon tells of a funny incident where he realised he had a full bladder and no chance of emptying it before the race started.

“So I decided to just wee when I got into the water,” he wrote.

“the swim starts, and it’s like a rugby match, as all deep water starts are. And I say to myself, hold it until at least half way so you can get some space. I did just this. I swim over to the side of the course near a course marshall in his kayak. This is the conversation:

French guy: Do you need help?

Me: Just doing a wee.

French guy: So you need help! What can I do?

Me: I’m doing a wee!

French guy: Oui, you need help!

Me: I’m just doing a wee wee.

French guy: Oui oui, you need help what can I do??

Me: No no, I don’t need help I’m doing a wee wee. I’m doing a Le Piss mate!!”

The second leg of the race, Jon couldn’t help but appreciate the views.

“The ride over the top of the mountains was breathtaking and like a culmination of everything you tried to do in your life,” he said.

Jon said he endured the running leg as he had to deal with a stomach bug throughout, but he crossed the line having finished the entire race in around 15 hours.

“You can’t compare it to any other race,” he said.

“My best time is 12 hours but this is the hardest race in the world.

“It was an insane course.”

So far Jon has raised $7,100 for the charity but is keen to let people know they can still donate at https:// www.facebook.com/ varietytasmania

And what is next on the list?

“I am reinvigorated,” said Jon.

“It feels good to be fit.

“There’s a half ironman in Melbourne I may do with my sister.

“She will do the swim and run and I will do the bike.

“There is also the North Coast Triathlon series of six races between Tweed, Yamba and Trial Bay.

“They will be some nice short races I can do.”

Facts about the Iron Man World Championships

• Every second year it is held in Kona, Hawaii and every alternate year in Nice, France

• The swim is the first leg and it is 3.8km in the Mediterranean sea.

• The bike is the second leg and is 180km with 8,000 feet of climbing

• The run is the third leg and is literally a marathon at 42.2km

This article is from: