Great Britain's Ruth Astle was on a roll. A string of age-group titles, including two world crowns, saw the nowG 34-year-old turn professional in 2020. A year later she won Ironman Mallorca followed by South Africa. The second-fastest bike split helped her to fifth overall at the 2022 Ironman World Champs in Utah followed by victory at Ironman Israel. But a 2023 bedeviled by calf issues has decimated her season. She dug deep to finish 12th in Kona but DNF'ed at her season finale in Cozumel after her calves flared up again. "It's been a learning year," Astle says...
220: Tell us about the injuries that have derailed your season.
Ruth Astle: I'm still trying to get to the bottom of it. I've scans booked and experts to speak to, so hopefully there'll be something more concrete soon. I've learnt some interesting stuff around hypermobility but, as of now, there's no golden bullet. Still, I'm swimming and cycling.
220: So, all in all, a season to forget?
RA: It's been disappointing. I came in with high hopes from last year and had enjoyed a good winter. But stuff began to go wrong from March, and it's mentally been tough to deal with. You overcome an injury and then something else pops up. That second calf issue was particularly devastating as I was down to race the US and Asian Opens in the build-up to Kona. Still, there's been good learnings to take away, especially around the physiology of the run, which in the long term will hopefully pay dividends. Also, I loved having India [Lee] at the pre-Kona training camp. That was great fun. I'm sure the frustrations of this year will add extra fuel to the fire next season.
220: That must be particularly tough for an athlete looking to make a living out of the sport.
Denne historien er fra March 2024-utgaven av 220 Triathlon.
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Denne historien er fra March 2024-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\"
