220 Triathlon January 2023

There’s one special issue of 220 that is always my favourite each year and luckily for you, it’s this one! Yes, it’s the time of year where we start to think ahead to the next race season and gift you a fantastic race calendar to start planning on. Supported this year by the wonderful team at the XTRI World Tour and their amazing photography, it will look great on your wall, will (hopefully!) inspire you to get out and train and give you a place to scribble all your race dates and key training sessions. For me so far, I’m planning a late summer trip to the Isles of Scilly for a multisport event and will be heading to Norseman again in August (but to volunteer, not race, that one’s…

THE BIG PIC With the water at 19°C and air temperature in single digits, it was the cold that was the initial talk of the desert-based 2022 Ironman 70.3 World Championship in St George, Utah on 28-29 Oct. The racing on the other hand was red-hot, with home favourite Taylor Knibb victorious in the women’s race after taking an early lead on the bike to finish in 4:03:20. In the men’s race, it was Norwegian powerhouse Kristian Blummenfelt who took the win, breaking free with three miles to go on the run to clock a 3:37:12. The Ironman 70.3 World Champs in Utah saw some amazing performances away from the pro races. Shown here is Rajesh Durbal, a triple-amputee from birth, who has completed the Ironman World Champs three times…

2022 is the year professional triathlon became more, well, professional: bigger prize purses, better broadcasts and higher profiles for those who take centre stage. But it’s also become the wild west of endurance sport and the saloon doors won’t stop swinging. I’ll explain. Triathlon is known for innovation, the ability to push the technical boundaries of swim, bike and run while experimenting with new distances and concepts. From the first neoprene wetsuits to the first tri-bars it has always been thus, and, largely, this is to be saluted. But without proper governance it also takes us to the O.K. Corral with most shooting from the hip while a select few have rocket launchers. So far this year we’ve had Daniela Ryf swimming in a wetsuit banned nine years ago for…

UNDER £12 LOMO VANTAGE GOGGLES £11 You can spend a fortune on goggles, but to our mind the money is better spent on a really good set for open-water and adding a budget set to your bag for the pool. These offer a great package. lomo.co.uk UNDER £13 NABAIJI SWIM BOXERS £12.99 Not into the skimpiness of budgies, but not a fan of kneelength jammers either? Then these swim boxers, sitting somewhere in the middle and chlorine-resistant, are a good option. decathlon.co.uk UNDER £25 HUUB/BRITISH TRI SWIM TOWEL £24.99 Show off your tri credentials in the pool and add a bit of, erm, swagger to your changing room moves with a federation-branded towel. Quick-drying and 100% cotton velour. huubdesign.com…

With a tagline of ‘explore perfection’, Coros is already appealing to those triathletes looking for marginal gains. But the Pod 2 has added ‘run beyond GPS’ to the manifesto. So what’s the idea here? The Pod 2 is a small, lightweight gadget that attaches to your run shoe and aims to expand the capabilities of your existing smart watch (compatible only with Coros watches). By using an integrated barometric altimeter, thermometer, compass, accelerometer and gyroscope, the Pod 2 can give accurate feedback on pace accuracy including distance and pace accuracy on the treadmill, more consistent tracking where GPS may drop out (such as round buildings), and an ‘effort pace’ metric, which accurately reflects the runner’s effort, regardless of changes in terrain. HOTTEST NEW GEAR Included inside the box you find…

Hawaii is part of my DNA. I’ve been coming to this island for 40 years to test myself. There’s no indigenous part of me that should connect in this way, but coming back is like a pilgrimage. In those final stages of the 1982 Ironman, I fought for belief in myself for maybe the first time. I’d never been an athlete and had this opportunity to win something. It’s such a great theme for triathletes, the idea that you’re finding something within yourself that you haven’t accessed before. You start stripping away the layers of who you think you should be, and discover who you are. I was ahead of the time wearing a trucker hat in ’82 - because it was part of the free swag that [sponsors] Bud…