Billy Monger has trained long and hard for his epic IRONMAN Kona bid, but he knows there is no way to truly prepare for what is about to confront him on the Big Island of Hawaii.
On Saturday week (October 26), Billy will take on the toughest test in triathlon – 140.6miles in brutal heat and humidity – to celebrate the 40th anniversary of annual UK charity event Comic Relief.
The 25-year-old former race car driver – now a popular TV presenter and personality, notably for Channel 4 F1 – had both his legs amputated after a near-fatal race crash in 2017, but he has not let the severity of his injuries stop him from pushing boundaries in sport.
Back racing within a year of his accident, Monger clinched podiums in British F3 races, and in 2021, made his first venture in endurance sport, raising £3 million for charity when he walked, cycled and kayaked across England in four days.
Raising vital funds for the charity, Billy will race the World Championship course in Hawaii as an IRONMAN Ambassador Athlete and has his sights set on the record for fastest double amputee on prosthetic legs.
Hoping to break the record by finishing in under 16 hours, 26 minutes and 59 seconds, Monger’s journey will also be filmed as a documentary which will air on BBC One and iPlayer in 2025.
Kona prep nearing completion
Billy has already taken in his final prep race for Kona by successfully completing IRONMAN 70.3 Weymouth in a time of 6:41:41. But that was only half the distance he will face in Kona – a brutal 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike leg and then a marathon run of 26.2 miles to finish. All in that searing heat and humidity.
Now, as the days count down to that date with destiny on triathlon’s most iconic course, Billy admits things are starting to get a little bit real.
Billy admits ‘I’m bricking it’
Writing in a post on his Instagram account, he said: “Soooo, just had to check the watch again… couldn’t believe it at first, BUT it’s actually less than a week until I head to KONA 🤯😬🌺
“Obviously I’m bricking it 😅 but weirdly I’m also super excited to put a YEARS worth of training into action, and to experience what life’s like on the Big island 🔥🏝️ Final sessions are getting ticked off, bring on RACEWEEK 😮💨💪🏼”
Support from Steadman
Billy will have plenty of support on October 26, including Britain’s Paralympic superstar Lauren Steadman.
She commented on his post: “Final countdown… it’s the journey to the destination not always the destination! Already conquered the hard part…! Will be watching 💪🏻”
Are we in a triathlon boom, or hurtling towards burnout? Laura Siddall on the growth of the sport
