Kona's Coming

Ask any long distance triathlete about their goals in the sport and there’s only one answer – to race Kona. It’s the toughest Ironman course and the winner in Hawaii definitely earns their title of Ironman World Champion. Before the athletes jet off, we chat about their past experiences of Kona.

Craig ‘Crowie’ Alexander – 2008 World Champion

What’s special about racing Kona?

I have only raced one other Ironman event – Port Macquarie in 2007. It is hard to compare as I had already qualified for Kona. So, I really raced Port Mac to gain some experience at the distance. It came at the start of the season and I had my first race in the USA two weeks later, so I didn't really race it the way I raced Kona.

Kona is the World Championships – obviously the conditions are tough because of the heat, humidity and wind. As the World Champs, you get the deepest and highest quality field of the year. 

What do you rate as being the best ever performance in Kona’s history? 

Luc Van Lierde set the record in 1996 and it still stands today. It is very difficult to compare times from year-to-year as the conditions are so variable. 

In my opinion, consistency from year-to-year is what separates the performances – the athletes who are able to bring a great performance each year. In light of that, it’s Mark, Dave and Paula who stand out. You also need to look at Natascha, Peter, Tim, Normann and Luc – they have all performed consistently well over the best part of a decade. 

What’s it like as reigning champ?

My preparation has been good. I am still learning, as this is only my third race in Kona, but I feel I am on track. There’ll definitely be pressure as defending champ, but there is always pressure. The first year [at Kona], I went in as the reigning Ironman 70.3 World Champ. I finished second on debut, so there was pressure last year to try and improve on that.

What are your best and worst experiences of racing Kona?

I have only raced twice and placed second and first, so it's a hard question to answer. I can say, going into my first race in 2007 with a knee injury, made it a very stressful experience over the last couple of weeks. I wasn't sure if I would be able to finish the race, and if it hadn't been for some great physical therapy in the last week, I probably wouldn't have.