Ironman

Kona Training Days: It’s Race Week on the Big Island

It's officially race week at the 2018 Ironman World Championship.

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Kona
Finland’s Kaisa Sali gets in a swim workout at the Kona Community Aquatic Center. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Sali has two fifth-place finishes (2016 and 2017) in Kona and will be looking to move up the podium in 2018. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Sali has been consistent on the Big Island and says she loves the conditions that get thrown at them on race day. See our complete interview with her here. Photo: Oliver Baker
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One area Sali likely hopes to improve on is her swim. Last year she came out of the water at 57:53, about nine minutes back of swim leader Lucy Charles. Photo: Oliver Baker
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American Sarah True is ready to race the Ironman World Championship for the first time in her career. Photo: Oliver Baker
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The two-time U.S. Olympian will look to be a part of the front swim pack. Photo: Oliver Baker
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True competed in her first Ironman at July’s Ironman European Championship in Frankfurt. She finished second behind three-time Ironman world champion Daniela Ryf and after the race Tweeted, “I did an Ironman & I think I liked it.” Photo: Oliver Baker
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One of the most heart-wrenching stories of the 2018 Ironman World Championship will be the comeback of American Matt Russell. Russell was struck by a van about four hours into last year’s race and suffered serious injuries. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Russell made a steady comeback and ultimately missed qualifying for this year’s Ironman World Championship by one slot. Ironman CEO Andrew Messick called Russell in August to offer him a wild card spot. “Considering the circumstances and my near miss at qualifying, he said that I deserve to come back and compete again so they offered me a wild card,” Russell wrote on Instagram. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Yesterday Russell posted about riding by the scene of last year’s accident during the training ride. “I really needed to do that to have closure,” he said. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Check back to Triathlete.com for more on Russell’s emotional return to Kona. Photo: Oliver Baker
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American Matt Hanson out for a ride with a few others, including coach Julie Dibens. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Hanson has shown great potential at the Ironman distance (most notably with three course record wins at Ironman Texas), but has yet to translate that to the Kona course. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Could this be the year Hanson breaks through? He’s capable of running as fast as anyone at this distance. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Great Britain’s Susie Cheetham gets in a ride on the Queen K. Photo: Oliver Baker
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Cheetham has great potential to get on the podium. She finished sixth in both 2015 and 2017. Photo: Oliver Baker

It’s officially race week at the 2018 Ironman World Championship and athletes are busy getting in their final workouts, preparing their bikes, and trying to keep the nerves at bay. Here are a few of the pros we caught at the Kona pool and on the Queen K. Keep up with all things Kona at Triathlete.com/Kona2018.

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