It will be Captain Matty Trautman’s 10th Ironman African Championship on Sunday.
In his first race as an amateur in 2014 he finished an insane 20th overall, including a stacked field of professionals.
We got to shoot the breeze on the beach 48hrs before the start and to hear why the kaptein is ready to prove that 39 is just a number, what he suggests to manage this course, and why patience always pays.
Video: Jin Media
The fast rising star who started triathlon relatively late in life, after round the world solo yacht racing, was considered to be our next great hope to win Kona.
A freak accident in 2017 left him with metal rods in his spine and even the surgeon said he was unlikely to ever race again.
That doctor didn’t know the steely determination of this muscled super hero.
After a long slow build Matt is back running like he did when he was winning races pre crash, and barring another mechanical like he had when he was leading the charge here a year ago, we think he’s going to win his first home championship on his 10th attempt. How much of a fairytale would that be.