Takeaways from spectating Kona 2019

Frodo is the GOAT

I’ll admit that not being alive during the Mark Allen/Dave Scott era I may be a little biased here. But after 2019’s performance at Kona, I firmly believe Jan Frodeno is the Greatest of All-Time triathlete. Let’s look at a few of his best performances:

• 2008 Olympic Gold
• 2015 and 2016 Ironman World Champion
• 2018 70.3 World Champion (1:06:33 half marathon!!!)
• 2019 Ironman World Champion and Kona record

When he isn’t injured, this man is unstoppable and I’m sure we haven’t seen the last of him. Ever since I set my sights on racing triathlon professionally, I’ve wanted to be on a start line with Jan Frodeno. I’ll try not to act like too much of a fanboy when it finally happens.

Is being the best in the world a mid-life crisis?

I’ve always told people who aren’t too familiar with triathlon that one of the great things about it is that for long course racing at least, peak performance seems to come in the mid-late 30’s. As a 25 year old it can be easy to look at younger pros like Rudy Von Berg and Sam Long and think that I’m already behind the ball. All it takes is one look at this year’s Kona podium to see I’ve still got a long, long time left in the sport:

1. Jan Frodeno – 38
2. Tim O’Donnell – 39
3. Sebastian Kienle – 35
4. Ben Hoffman – 36
5. Cameron Wurf – 36

And then lets not forget the staple of American triathlon, Andy Potts, who placed 14th this year at age 42!

Pass me once, shame on you. Pass me again, well…

Anyone who has raced anything from a local 5k, to your high school cross country state meet, to a full ironman knows that once you get passed by someone, especially close to the finish, it generally means you’re going to stay passed. That pass might provide a brief surge of mental motivation where your mind writes a check your body can’t cash, but 9 times out of 10, at the end of the day, you’re not going to get them back. This year however, Lucy Charles-Barclay did just that. Not to the absolutely motoring Anne Haug, but to reclaim 2nd place after being passed by Sarah Crowley who would eventually finish 3rd. 

After leading the entire race until halfway through the run, Lucy’s podium hopes seemed to be in trouble. With one devastating pass already made, the willpower it must have taken her to keep Sarah Crowley within range and then repass again with just a few miles to go in the race is hard to imagine. While it hurts to see Lucy finish 2nd once again, this move gained her a ton of respect in my eyes. 

To DNF or not to DNF. That is the question.

Disclaimer: I’ve never raced Kona. I’ve never raced a full Ironman. 

For a year that, as I understand it, was not exceptionally hard or hot as far as Kona goes, there seemed to be an exceptional number of DNFs in the pro field on both the men’s and women’s side. While I am sure that no professional athlete drops out of a race without waging a war within themselves, is it judgemental of me to think that maybe some drop out too easily? The answer to that is almost certainly a yes, it’s judgemental of me. I’m sure there will come a time when I have to pull out of a race, and I’ll despise myself for it, and hopefully it will have been the right move. But until then I can’t help but feel underwhelmed by some of the reasons given for dropping out on the biggest stage of the year. Rather than name names, I’d like to look at the other end of the spectrum, when Jan Frodeno (did I mention I’m a fanboy) decided to walk it in in Kona in 2017 rather than drop out. Here, at the World Championship, Jan honored the race, his sponsors, and most importantly, his competitors by finishing that race. This isn’t to say that sickness isn’t real, and that there aren’t very good financial reasons to sometimes call it early, or that the toll to ones body might be irreparable, all of which are 100% valid reasons to bow out. It’s also not to disparage anyone who did drop out in any way, as each situation is unique and only the athlete knows the full story. What am I trying to say then? Honestly I’m not sure. I’m not yet qualified to answer that question but I’m sure its a topic that will come up again and again and I’d prefer the first time I’m in that situation to not be the first time I’ve weighed what the decision means.

A full summary of professional DNFs.

Closing Thoughts

I didn’t grow up with Kona dreams. Hell, I’m not even sure I have them right now. But I do have dreams of being one of the best triathletes in the world, and the only way to really prove that is on the island. There is something incredibly special about that race that I hope I can truly be a part of in the future. So when I do get there, I plan to be fully be there.