Of the more than 1,500 triathletes who started the Ironman Lanzarote on Saturday morning, only about forty of them are professionals. Athletes who dedicate themselves body and soul to triathlon, with this being their way of life. The rest are amateur triathletes, who strive to improve themselves day after day. Some do it to obtain one of the places in their age group to participate in the Ironman of Hawaii. Others do it to cross the finish line and fulfill a dream. These are the stories of the other "iron" men and women of Ironman Lanzarote.
When the lights of the Ironman finish line begin to turn on and the sun hides behind the horizon, the Avenida de Las Playas in Puerto del Carmen becomes a catwalk where the dreams of anonymous triathletes come true. Athletes who have combined their work with training and who have taken time away from being with their family or friends, to be among the "finishers" of Ironman Lanzarote 2012.
One of the most shocking stories of the twenty-first edition of Ironman Lanzarote 2012 was the one starring Javier Mérida. Four years ago he suffered the amputation of his right leg after being run over. Sport and triathlon have helped him to improve himself day after day. Javier Mérida, with a prosthesis in his leg, managed to fulfill the dream of crossing the finish line of Ironman Lanzarote. He did it with his newborn son and his wife was waiting for him at the finish line. Javier Mérida spent 16 hours, 46 minutes and 9 seconds completing the toughest triathlon in the world.
Anne Bristoe, crossed the finish line with three seconds to spare before it closed
Triathletes have 17 hours to complete the 3.8 kilometers of swimming, the 180 kilometers of cycling and the 42.2 kilometers of running. At 00:00 hours the finish line closes, with the triathletes who have not managed to complete the course by that time being disqualified. The large crowd that gathered in the stands was the architect of the arrival of the British Anne Elaine Bristoe just three seconds before the finish line closed.
Anne Bristoe made an enormous effort to cover the last 200 meters of the course. As soon as she crossed the finish line, the British woman collapsed to the ground. The applause of the public moved those present and Anne celebrated the fact of becoming a new "iron" woman.
Several weddings in sight
There are many stories that occur throughout the 17 hours of competition of Ironman Lanzarote. Several triathletes as soon as they crossed the finish line did not hesitate to propose to their partners. This was the case of Jordi Cols who after 16 hours of effort took the speaker's microphone, knelt down and asked his partner for her hand in marriage. The engagement ring was not missing.
From the newsroom of Marca to Ironman Lanzarote
The twenty-first edition of Ironman Lanzarote was attended by Roberto Palomar, Head of Editing of the Marca newspaper. On two occasions he had come to the island of Lanzarote to cover Ironman Lanzarote for his newspaper and since then he considered the possibility of experiencing it as a triathlete. After nine months of training, Roberto Palomar also fulfilled the dream of being a finisher of Ironman Lanzarote.
Palomar was about to be disqualified by one of the judges of the competition. During the cycling event, he contacted Radio Marca several times through his mobile phone. He had to explain to the judges that he was a member of a media outlet and that he was narrating nationally what was happening in the race.
The Ironman winners entertained the last classified
The Spaniard Víctor del Corral and the Danish Michelle Vesterby, winners of Ironman Lanzarote, were in charge of receiving the last classified in the race. At the foot of the finish line they entertained the anonymous triathletes who made a great effort to cross the finish line of the Ironman.
A detail that was appreciated by all those who saw the dream of becoming men and women of "iron" of Ironman Lanzarote 2012 fulfilled.
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