2025 Olympic Nationals – Silver Redemption

What a difference a year makes. On June 6 I competed at the USAT Multi-Sport National Championships in Omaha, Nebraska competing in the Olympic Distance Duathlon. This was the same venue as 2024 where I was simply, a disaster. This year I was healthy…

I remember last year’s race like it was yesterday. I have never been more down after a duathlon race than this one. I had sprained my left knee ACL and tore my meniscus about three weeks before the race. I did everything I could do to compete and on race morning I hoped somehow, I would show up and race well. That didn’t happen in a grand way. It felt like I was running on one leg with the lack of strength. This year I felt prepared heading into the race, and I was healthy.

On another note, this race almost didn’t happen. The night before I was flying to Omaha, while packing my bike in my bike carrier, I broke off the part holding my chain on the back wheel. I did not have the parts and even if I did, I didn’t have the confidence to repair it to be ready for a race. I got it to a mechanic first thing the next morning and he fixed it pretty quickly, but he did use many years of experience to fix it as I certainly did a number on it. He then taught and watched me assemble and dissemble the back unit to make it easier to fit in the case.

I was relieved…I could now make the trip and race!

In warmups I felt ready. I didn’t have a hop in my step, but I didn’t feel worn either. I was ready to go. I knew one of my competitors well who has an amazing first run so I was setting some early targets based on what I could run and hopefully be relative to him after the first run. This race consisted of – 10k Run – (40k) 24.8-mile Bike – 5k Run.

Run 1 started out well. I was running at my target pace for mile one which was faster than my overall target but where I wanted to be. At mile two I was 15 seconds behind my target, mile 4 I was 30 seconds behind and came in 42 seconds behind heading into transition while also running just slightly over my target pace. I felt I had worked but I was under control and mentally felt good where I was with the gap.

Last year I didn’t pass my target until mile 20 and this year I caught him at mile 2 and rode away. Also, at that time I ripped a gel open that exploded on my fingers and was so sticky it pulled my shifter knob off the handlebars on the right hand and stuck to my thumb. I saved the cap and put it in my back pocket for after race. At this point I lost the ability to shift while I was in the full down aero position. Thankfully there is a second shifter underneath the handlebar so that is what I used the remainder of the race. It was inconvenient but I at least didn’t lose the ability to shift gears.

The remainder of the bike was so different than last year. I felt strong going up the hills and fast going down. I felt a typical strain in the lower back and glutes at mile 20 and was cognizant to not push too hard with a warm final 5k run remaining. I had a fast dismount and ran into transition with the legs feeling worn but ok overall. As I approached my transition location, I quickly noticed there was only one bike racked on our entire row which meant I was in second place. That shot adrenaline through me as I consumed my last round of salt and grabbed a gel as I headed out on the run.

I started out with a good pace as I began the 1.55-mile effort before u-turning to come back. As I was approaching the U-turn my left hamstring began to flutter and when I made the sharp turn to come back it really let me know it was not happy and in jeopardy of seizing into a full charley-horse. I attempted to keep a steady cadence and stride as I headed back and then at mile 2.2 the hamstring locked, and I was dead stopped. I thought to not panic and breath while I punched and stretched the left leg and hamstring. After 30 seconds I was able to begin walking, transitioning into a trot, and then into a stride. When I got a stride going it took me three different ways of landing on the left leg to figure out what would not cause it to seize again.

I kept that going the remainder of the way as I made my way to the final 90 degree left turn into the final finishing chute that was about 75 yards long. Being that it was a left turn served me well as I took a hard plant on my right leg as I turned protecting the left hamstring and I was clear. I sprinted through the finish and was ecstatic! I earned Silver after my most disappointing championship race just a year ago.

Looking back on each of the phases:

Run 1 = A- – For a challenging rolling hill 10k, I missed my target by :02 per mile but was within :42 of my target which exceeded my goal feeling strong going into the bike.
Bike = A – I put out my best power numbers since the 2023 World Championship in Ibiza which allowed me to create separation heading into the final run.
Run 2 = C – The 30 second stoppage to deal with the cramp led to a sub-par final run.
Mental = A+ – I was dialed in from the opening gun and did not drift. I executed the nutrition, hydration and race plan and while I push the limits on the bike gambling my legs on the final run, I figured it out and did not lose a position.

I am proud of my bounce back race from last year and came out healthy. Now to recover and get a few punchy workouts in prior to the World Championships in Pontevedra Spain in two weeks!

– Add Health to Your Life