Canadian triathlon star Lionel Sanders was the prohibitive favorite heading into this weekend’s Ironman Couer d’Alene race and, through the swim, bike and first third of the run appeared on track to contend for the win. After six and a half hours of racing, though, Sanders struggled with nutrition issues, throwing up on the side of the road and eventually just struggling to get to the finish line over an hour behind the leaders.
Last night Sanders posted a video update on his Instagram account to let his fans know he was OK and providing a few thoughts on what happened out on the course.
“It was probably the best Ironman preparation I’ve ever done, the most consistent,” he said. “No overtraining, just very good quality, to the best of my knowledge. I even practiced nutrition – everything, (but) I seem to be struggling with the fourth discipline right now, nutrition.”
“I got really weak at about six and a half hours and started to lose muscle function,” he continued. “I started to cramp up and, honestly, I spent the final five miles actually wondering if I was going to finish because I was having trouble walking and I was having trouble holding my own torso up.”
“A lot of people were enquiring if I was OK, and I am OK, just a little defeated and frustrated.”
Sanders has not yet qualified for the Ironman World Championship and is slated to compete against three-time Kona champ Jan Frodeno in three weeks time. We will have to see what the rest of the summer now holds for Sanders.
