I may well be swimming backwards now. With the country's biggest waterfall up ahead, the outflow is seriously challenging my forward momentum. The flags on the shore and gathered supporters clearly show my target but I'm making little headway. Trying to make myself as streamlined as possible, I pull myself through the fast-flowing water as best I can. To my right I spot another competitor taking a more direct line, but the current gets him and in a matter of seconds he's far behind me. After a good deal of almost stationary swimming, the water shallows and I see the smooth rocks below. As I clamber onto them, I hear my supporter Johan and he quickly grabs me. I apologise for his wait. That was one heck of a swim exit and is a decent reflection of the race itself, with both awesomeness and difficulty stitched all over it. I'm in Sweden for an XTRI race, the aptly named Swedeman.
A LONG TIME COMING
I'd had plans to do this race since 2020. Covid twice put paid to that, with last year a knee injury doing the same. So, I was very grateful to finally be getting the chance to pick up the yellow T-shirt.
In theory, the course should suit me. A fairly mild swim and then a bike course that, in my opinion, favours a time trial bike. I've always found running after a road-bike ride far more difficult. Also, on a timetrial bike I do feel the focus on riding fast and the ability to do just that is altogether better. With an almost entirely off-road run ending with an ascent and descent of Åreskutan at over 1,400m, there was a lot for me to like about the course.I've raced in both Norway and Sweden before and the landscape does feel familiar to me as a Scotsman, just with slightly better looking inhabitants!
Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av 220 Triathlon.
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Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av 220 Triathlon.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
"I HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO INFLUENCE THE GROWTH OF TRIATHLON"
British Triathlon CEO Ruth Daniels talks Paris, her plans to grow tri and her own personal goals... knees allowing
ZWIFT RIDE
£1,199.99 Zwift's new Ride is an indoor bike that might help you break your PB... but won't break the bank
PARIS SHOWED THE VALUE OF OLYMPIC EXPERIENCE
With the spotlight on triathlon like never before at these Games, debutant athletes talked about being overwhelmed by the unique environment
THE OLYMPIC CHAMPION
On 31 July, Great Britain's Alex Yee put together arguably the greatest one-day performance we have ever seen at an Olympic Games to win gold. And we were there at the finish line to speak to tri's new poster boy...
GAMES AT THE GAMES
After watching and enjoying the Olympic triathlon events, Brunt amused himself by playing the 'guess how far into each event I would die' game...
WHERE EAGLES DARE
With little heat prep, the wrong gear choice and a course-recce mistake, would experienced extreme triathlete Sean McFarlane soar like an eagle or drop like a stone in Italy?
HOW TO INCREASE RUN PACE WHEN FATIGUED
The ability to dig deep in the latter stages of a race helped Alex Yee achieve Olympic gold. Here Ben, a member of Team GB's coaching staff in Paris, explains how you too can find that extra gear...
HOW TO CARB LOAD
PACKING YOUR WORKING CELLS WITH CARBOHYDRATES IN THE BUILD-UP TO YOUR BIG RACE IS A PROVEN STRATEGY TO RACE STRONGER AND FASTER...
BUYER'S GUIDE: BIKE COMPUTERS
Log your rides, find your way and monitor your multisport training with a quartet of impressive bike computers...
POLAR GRIT X2 PRO
\"You can't be anything other than impressed with the GPS, whose design is one of the significant changes to the V3\"