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Friday, October 26, 2012

Finishing Last


I think the thing I most love about triathlons is that it is a race against you. A competition with your doubts and limitations. But you decide whether or not you finish. And with 20 seconds left on the clock to the 17-hour cut off too a 3.8 km swim, 180 km bike ride and a full marathon, a 77-year-old woman crosses the finish line in the Ironman World Championships in Kona. She was the very last official finisher of the day and I just can’t help feeling like she was biggest winner of the day. She had to qualify to do this race, meaning she had to have trained and done another IM somewhere else to get to Kona. She had the setbacks of age to deal with and looking at her, you know that “impossible” is a fallacy.
Harriet Anderson, if I had been there, I would have given you the biggest hug in the world.
You are an Ironman.

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