After 3.9 kilometres of swimming and a 180 km bike ride, Prince George triathlete Angela Naeth was in sixth place heading into the run in Saturday's Ironman world championship in Hawaii when she was forced to make an agonizing decision.
She wanted to finish the race as she got off her bike in the transition area but her aching foot would not allow it.
After six hours of racing, Naeth knew there was no way she could finish the 42.2 kilometre run in withering heat and brutal humidity under a cloudless sky on the big island at Kailua-Kona. Limping noticeably, she walked rather than ran past the cameras broadcasting the race to the rest of the world and was forced to abandon her hopes of finishing.
It was a disappointing end for what was shaping up to be an incredible debut at the world championship for the 33-year-old Naeth, who tore a tendon in her foot during a training run 12 days before the race.
"Unfortunately it was too much, it kind of sucks, because I could feel it right away after the swim to the bike and I kind of knew," said Naeth. "I tried to push through the bike and it was rough, I was riding with one leg basically. It was a good bike, nonetheless.
"I'm really stoked. Obviously it was good for me only having really one leg."
Naeth lived up to expectations and cooked the course on her ride, posing the second-fastest split time. She rode the 180.2 km course in 4:54:55, second only to Daniela Ryf of Switzerland.
Ryf overtook Jodie Swallow of England for the lead early in the ride and held it the rest of the way, winning her first Ironman in 8:57:57. Rachel Joyce of Great Britain was second (9:03:56) and Liz Blatchford of Australia was third (9:07:51).
"It was a good experience either way, it's always fun to race the world championships and see where you potentially could come," said Naeth." I know I'm a strong cyclist comparatively and that's where I expected my bike would be. It's just a matter of putting it all together."
An MRI in Hawaii revealed a slight tendon tear in the toe and forefoot area and Naeth received a cortisone shot three days before the race, but it proved ineffective. Her sponsors were aware of her injury.
"They're just happy I was able to come here and support and really promote them well because this is THE race in triathlon," said Naeth. "Just to be even on the start line is huge. I'm excited, it gives me hope for next year. I have unfinished business."
Naeth said she chose the wrong swimmer to follow and lost the pack in the water, which added to her time. She ended up passing the women she started following and was on her own for most of the 3.9 km swim. She was 20th out of the water.
Temperatures reached 32 C Saturday at Kona and radiant heat from the paved areas pushed 49 C, with no relief from the sun. Naeth trained for a month in Kona to get used to the conditions.
"It was as humid as humid gets, it's actually one of the hotter days that I've been here," Naeth said. "It was one of the hottest (world championships) ever."
Amanda Carfrae, of Australia, who won the race in 2010, 2013 and 2104, dropped out with a shoulder injury early into the bike leg, not long after Naeth passed her. Carfrae got hurt when she crashed on her bike earlier in the week. Heather Wurtele of Kelowna was forced to retire early in the ride when her rear chain derailleur got stuck.
Jan Frodeno of Germany won the men's race in 8:14:40. Frodeno was third out of the water and first off the bike and shared the podium with countyman Andreas Raelert (8:17:43), who finished second despite a fall on the bike course. Timothy O'Donnell of the United States (8:19:40) was third.
Brent McMahon of Victoria finished ninth in his first Ironman world championship. McMahon, a native of Kelowna, stopped the clock 15:33 off the pace in 8:30:15. McMahon still owns the record for the fastest Ironman debut (7:55:48) set last year in Tempe, Ariz.
A total of 2,367 athletes entered the race. Former IndyCar racer Alex Zanardi, whose legs were amputated following a 2001 crash, and TV chef Gordon Ramsay, competed as age-class racers.
