This past weekend saw a wide range of races all over the world, from the extreme Norseman event that starts with a dive off a ferry into freezing water to the original American swimrun race in Maine to pros battling it out under smoky skies in Boulder—and, of course, USA Triathlon Age-Group Nationals.
There’s nothing like looking back at an exciting and beautiful weekend of racing to get you motivated for the next one. Here were some of our favorite photos from this past weekend’s races.
The pro women get in the water at the Ironman 70.3 Boulder, where a number of athletes were trying to make their final bids for Collins Cup team spots.
Recent Olympic relay silver medalist Taylor Knibb dives in to her first half-iron distance race. She was ultimately caught around 10K on the run, but held on for second.
An age-group athlete exits the swim in Boulder.
One of the pro women takes a high-speed turn in Boulder, where smoke from wildfires filled the air.
An elite chase group formed early during the bike.
Emma Pallant-Brown passed Taylor Knibb to secure the win.
Wildfire smoke made for tough conditons.
Sam Long made up a swim deficit on the bike and then ran the fastest half-marathon of the day on his way to the pro men’s win at in Boulder.
Over in Norway, athletes jump off a ferry to begin the swim leg of the Norseman Xtreme Triathlon. It’s considered one of the toughest races out there.
The Norseman swim in Eidfjord is notoriously cold, with average water temperatures hovering around 50 degrees Fahrenheit.
The difficult conditions continued throughout the day, with constant headwinds on the bike.
Due to the COVID pandemic, only 100 athletes were permitted to race the 2021 edition of Norseman—a intense race that requires you bring a support team as well.
Punishing wind and rain made uphill progress to the mountaintop finish line at Gaustatoppen challenging.
Julie Aspesletten of Norway wins the women’s race.
The men’s winner, Jon Saeveras Breivold of Norway, laid down after finishing a tough day.
For the Swimrunners at Odyssey Swimrun in Casco Bay, Maine, the race began with an opening two-mile run up a steep hill from the ferry dock on Peaks Island.
Swimrun requires teams of two to swim from island to island and then run across to their next swim leg.
The footage can be treacherous—especially when you’re tied to your partner and carrying all your equipment.
The more experienced swimrunners, like Marcus Barton, are able to leap across difficult terrain, like this seaweed on House Island.
The swimrun event in Casco Bay was the first swimrun race in the U.S. and utilizes the islands off the coast of Portland, Maine. After making it through seaweed and uneven rocks, teams run through Fort Scammell, a fortress used during the Civil War.
Along with the traditional long-course team event, there are also short-course and solo options.
The short-course and solo racers covered 10 total miles of running and 2.5 miles of swimming over four islands. The long-course athletes ran 17 miles and swam about 4.5 miles.
Working together is important for swimrun.
The best part of any race is the finish and celebrating with your teammates.