In a year in which Sebastian Kienle announced his retirement as a professional athlete (even though, thankfully, that will last a little longer) and in a year in which his performance was almost always a little disappointing for various reasons, last weekend was a delight for all his fans worldwide and of course for Kienle himself. During Ironman South Africa, he lost the victory in the final kilometers to compatriot Maurice Clavel, but he still finished in a wonderful second place and was not injured afterwards as was often a problem in recent years.
“I enjoyed it. Even when I was close to pass out on the last five km and lost the win. And I‘m very happy for Maurice Clavel. Super strong race. A super tough challenge for everyone. If you finished the race, be proud and enjoy.
I‘m very happy that I could do a race where I was just hurting for the right reasons! Thanks to all my partners, my coach and especially my family”, he wrote afterwards on his socials.
Enjoy some amazing pictures of Kienle racing, taken by Kevin Sawyer and shared by Kienle himself.
