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In a few days the Ironman World Championship takes place on the biggest of the Hawaiian islands, Big Island, 31 years after the Ironman was born in Honolulu. In the usually quiet village of Kailua-Kona, which is on the west coast of the island, athletes will fight for the title in the pro category and in the different age group categories on October 10th. Beside a few exceptions, all the triathletes have to qualify for the world championship at one of the 24 worldwide held Ironman races. The overall winner of the past years’ races, like Faris Al-Sultan, are qualified for their whole life. Also the top placed pros and age group winners do not have the qualification pressure in the following year.

From the athletic view, this Ironman earns for sure the title of a world championship. Everybody who is known in Triathlon will race in Kona. And also the climatic conditions make that race unique. Strong wind, high temperatures and humidity make it difficult for all the athletes. It can be the wavy water in the bay of Kona or the wind on the bike course, which changes direction and produces more head wind than tail wind. There are similar stories about the run. 50 degrees Celsius and glimmering concrete on the turning point in the Energy Lab are seldom. Who in this race is in the lead has not only done a smart race, but was also the best from his conditions.

The athletes of Team Abu Dhabi Triathlon would like to have such a good day on October 10^th. Faris Al-Sultan, Andrea Steinbecher and Swen Sundberg have trained together in Santa Barbara, California, the last weeks. At the beginning, the location was unknown, but it was a good choice. The training as well as the weather conditions were perfect. The untypical American city with its coffee shops and restaurants helped the athlete’s also to recover mentally from the tough workouts. Now all of them have arrived well in Kona, and they use the last days to prepare for the big day.