A ten-hour bonus: Alexander Bleffgen starts at the Ironman Hawaii

Created: 05/10/2022, 07:00

Taking part is everything: the man from Marzlingen would be “very, very satisfied” if he crossed the finish line in less than ten hours.

© Marathon-Photos.com/private

The Marzlingen hobby triathlete Alexander Bleffgen is relaxed about the Ironman in Hawaii.

In doing so, he is entering completely new territory.

Marzling

- A small group of islands is the Mecca of triathlon and host to one of the most challenging endurance competitions in the world: Hawaii.

Year after year, the international triathlon elite gather at the Ironman there – 3.9 kilometers of swimming, 180.3 kilometers of cycling and 42.2 kilometers of running have to be mastered.

On Saturday, an athlete from the district also undergoes the torture that lasts several hours: the amateur triathlete Alexander Bleffgen from TSV Jahn Freising, who lives in Marzling.

Preparation with obstacles

After the 31-year-old had bought the qualification ticket for the World Cup in Hawaii in fourth place at the Ironman Italy in 2021 (we reported), he took part in the Challenge Roth - the German triathlon Mecca in Middle Franconia - at the beginning of July this year.

The week after that, however, he got Corona and was therefore unable to train for two weeks.

"It affected me more than I thought and it took a long time," Bleffgen admits.

"After that I noticed that breathing was getting heavier and my pulse got higher faster." So a really targeted preparation in Hawaii wasn't possible at all.

"It was more about building up the basics." It wasn't until September that he was able to train normally again.

Accordingly, the Marzlinger sees the Ironman more as a bonus.

"It affected me more than I thought" - Alexander Bleffgen was unable to prepare specifically for Hawaii after a corona infection.

© Marathon-Photos.com/private

In any case, the weather conditions will be completely new territory for the 31-year-old.

Although it is currently "only" 32 degrees in Hawaii, the high humidity is a big problem: "You just lose an incredible amount of liquid." Of course, he wasn't really able to prepare for that.

The native of Sauerland therefore does not set a specific competition goal – “I would be very, very satisfied with a time under ten hours”.

It should be noted that the amateur triathlete is not under the pressure to succeed of a competitive athlete, but only accepts the torments in the water, on the bike and when running for the joy of the personal challenge.

(By the way: everything from the region is now also available in our regular Freising newsletter.)

First torture, then recovery

Bleffgen had to pay the travel and accommodation costs himself.

Because he had already booked everything through a travel service provider in November, at least the flight costs were kept within limits.

"But you still have to reckon with a five-digit total," says the endurance athlete.

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After the competition, he will stay on the island with his girlfriend for three days, put his feet up and explore the landscape.

However: "The day after the competition, everything goes rather slowly," says the man from Marzling, laughing.

You can find more current news from the district of Freising at Merkur.de/Freising.