Chris McCormack Ready To Give Kona One More Shot

Two-time Ironman world champion Chris “Macca” McCormack came onto Competitor Radio to chat about next month’s Ironman World Championship race in Kona, Hawaii. See a few excerpts from the interview below and listen to the complete podcast here.

On deciding to race in Kona one more time.
“After last year I wanted to go back one more time. I raced last year and I was tied to Challenge and I told them ‘I’m going to race Kona more time and then I’m going to hang it up,’ but I didn’t have the race I was after and I was so bummed. I didn’t want my last year to finish in the back of a truck. So I said to Emma and my kids that we’ll go back one more time to Hawaii as a race and then after that Dad promises that we’ll go back and support everyone who is racing, so this is my last year probably as a serious racer.”

On the next generation of Ironman athletes.
“Now what motivates is as much about seeing the next wave come through and being a part of it. I did that with the Olympics… I was able to marvel and just appreciate as a lover of the sport just how far that racing had come. Now I sit back and I say ‘wow, these guys are incredible.’ I think that’s happening in Ironman racing. I think we’re going to see the next wave. We saw that with Pete Jacobs and the dynamics and the way the race is changing and all of those new KPR ranking points and how that’s going to affect the sport moving forward.”

On if he can win one more Ironman World Championship.
“I’m enjoying racing the sport on a personal level. I think I can win it. I think if you put me in a position to win it I won’t be afraid to pull the trigger, that’s for sure. I think I appreciate that the Freddy Van Lierde’s and the Eneko Llanoses and the Pete Jacobs and these athletes are going to be very difficult to unleash on Kona day. The one thing you learn after racing out there for 10 years is that anything can happen out there and Kona doesn’t know names, nor does it care. I’m turning up this year with that mindset. I’m going to have a great day. I’ve been here many times before. I’ve won here before, I know what it takes to win and I’ll stay close all day and give me a chance and I’ll pull the trigger and have a shot at it.”

RELATED:
– Macca’s Musings: The Soul Of The Sport
– Chris McCormack On The State Of Triathlon
– Macca Talks TriRock Austin And Final Kona Prep

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