Cam Wurf has vowed to return to Kona better than ever after a seventh-placed finish at the IRONMAN World Championship, his third top 10 on the Big Island.
The 41-year-old pro rider for the INEOS Grenadiers was 43rd after the swim, mid-division after the bike and then moved into the top 10 as he was one of the few athletes to look relatively smooth on a brutal run as Germany’s Patrick Lange powered away from the rest of the field for a third world title.
But any thoughts that it could be an impressive farewell to Hawaii for Wurf were banished straight afterwards when he spoke to IRONMAN Oceania in a clip you can watch on Instagram.
‘Further back than fullback’
He said: “It wasn’t the greatest of starts, I literally got blown out of the water in the swim, I was further back than fullback there, and a lot of things went through my mind. I felt like I’d let a lot of people down as I knew I’d put myself out of a chance of winning the race.
“But I guess on a positive I was quite comfortable because I was going quite slow, so I thought I’m going to have to ride really hard or run really well, one of the two, and try and put myself back in the race somehow. I’m certainly not a quitter.”
He proceeded to set the sixth fastest bike time, one of seven to go under the previous course record, returning to transition in 18th. And then he continued his forward trajectory as soon as he hit the run course.
“I didn’t ride great but I rode ok, I sort of picked off a few people but I realised I rode pretty quick and I thought you never know, maybe all these guys at the front are hurting.
‘I’m glad I’ve flipped that around’
“And sure enough I just got out there on the Queen K and I’d already passed quite a few guys and I could see a lot out ahead of me and I just thought right, stay calm to the Energy Lab and then just see what happens.
“I think I was getting close to the top 10 there and I was in and out of the Energy Lab and got back onto the Queen K and dragged myself back up to seventh.
“Honestly, I’m rapt, I’m over the moon. I think I showed that I’m still competitive at this level.
“I knew if I didn’t swim well, that was it, I wasn’t going to have a chance to win but I think I’ve proven that I can still contend here. I’ve just got to get on top of that swim, I’ve done it here in the past, I’ve swum well, and I know I can ride well when I’m at the front of the race,” he added.
And he leaves Hawaii determined to continue to improve and push himself, adding: “We’ll go away and figure out where we weren’t quite in the race but I know that there’s a chance here to put it all together.
“I know I’ve got limited years left and I know after the past couple of years a lot of people are saying, he’s getting old, he’s slipping. To be honest when I was out there, I was worried people were going to be saying that, and I’m glad I’ve flipped that around because I’m far from done here. I believe I can come back and have my best day.”
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