The Finish Line
By Topher Balfer | Photos provided by Daniel Allemond
lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). Funnily enough, Daniel said his first reaction was not fear or sadness, but disappointment that the timing might impede his chances of participating in the Ironman. “When my doctor was telling me, ‘You have leukemia,’ I think I asked at least three times, ‘I’ve been training for this race. I can’t wait until next week to start all this stuff?’” Daniel said. Daniel’s treatment couldn’t wait, and he changed his focus from crossing
Daniel Allemond bikes 112 miles during the November 2019 Ironman in Arizona.
After a years-long battle with leukemia, Daniel Allemond is ready to go the distance.
I
n September 2015, Daniel Allemond was just a week away from completing his first Half Ironman, a race he’d spent months preparing for. It was set to be his biggest challenge yet, and while he would ultimately be successful, it would be four years before he’d cross the finish line — and the race to get there would be longer and more arduous than he’d ever expected. At first, Daniel thought his increased fatigue and lightheadedness were simply results of overtraining. He’d been pushing harder and harder to ensure his success in the Half Ironman, which would see him swimming 1.2 miles, biking 56 miles and running a half marathon. He was no stranger to such rigorous training, but he knew something was amiss when his speed and energy
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Winter 2020
began to decline dramatically. “I would have to stop running because I couldn’t breathe,” Daniel said. “I would go ride bikes with my friends, and I would get left behind because I couldn’t keep up, when normally, I could easily keep up with the guys I ride with. There were a couple of times I remember almost blacking out in the swimming pool because I just didn’t have enough oxygen.” Daniel paid a visit to his family doctor, who directed him to a cardiologist, who then referred him to an oncologist. Within a matter of days, Daniel had gone from a strict athletic training regimen to awaiting the results of a bone marrow biopsy. And barely two weeks after meeting with his family doctor, he received news he never expected to hear: Daniel was diagnosed with acute
the Half Ironman finish line to fighting for his life. The following week, Daniel received his first round of chemotherapy at the Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer and Survivorship Program at Ochsner. He would go on to have seven more bone marrow biopsies, close to 20 lumbar punctures and almost 100 chemotherapy infusions. When Ochsner Magazine last spoke to Daniel in 2016, he was nearing the end of his treatment following a long and eventful battle, during which he was honored as an Ochsner Saints Hero and was recognized as the featured patient at that year’s Moonlight & Miracles Gala. Three years later and over the incredible hurdle that leukemia presented, Daniel set his sights on the goals that motivated him before the unexpected detour. It’s his way, he said, of reclaiming what he almost lost. First on his to-do list was the Half Ironman. In September 2019 — just eight months after his final chemo treatment — Daniel traveled to Augusta, Georgia to finish what he started. He was more prepared than ever. “Now, I laugh because I’ve probably set a record for training for a Half Ironman,” Daniel said. “Because I’ve been training for about four years.” Daniel and his coach set a goal of five and a half hours to complete the Half Ironman, which was held on a hot day and required him to run and bike over challenging, hilly terrain — but Daniel was ready to close that chapter of his
