Search
shop

IRONMAN triathlon star reveals heart symptoms forced him to withdraw during Kona slugfest

Robert Wilkowiecki, in the top 10 in the previous IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, explains exactly what happened to him in Kona.
News Director
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

Polish athlete Robert Wilkowiecki is back in his home country and having further tests after symptoms of paroxysmal arrhythmia forced him to withdraw two thirds of the way through the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona.

The 30-year-old was in the lead pack in the swim in Hawaii with a time of 47:23 and initially to the fore on the bike too, which he completed, but he didn’t start the run.

Patrick Lange, also in the front group during the swim and the chase pack on the bike would go on to win an epic race in brilliant style.

Advertisement

Difficult decision

And writing on Instagram, Wilkowiecki has given a detailed explanation as to the reason for his unfortunate exit, revealing that the issue had first appeared at IRONMAN Frankfurt where he left the race after the swim.

He said: “After my IRONMAN race in August I was diagnosed with paroxysmal arrhythmia following thorough examinations and consultations.

“My medical team gave me the green light to participate in the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona. I was closely monitored throughout the preparation period, with my health under constant supervision by specialists.

“Unfortunately during the race the symptoms of arrhythmia returned forcing me to make the difficult decision to withdraw from the competition.”

info-circle What is Paroxysmal Arrhythmia?

According to John Hopkins medicine, an arrhythmia is “an abnormality in the timing or pattern of the heartbeat.

“When you have an arrhythmia, your heart may beat too quickly or too slowly, or you may experience an irregular rhythm in which your heart feels as if it is ‘skipping a beat’.”

Next steps

Looking forward, Wilkowiecki added: “Prioritising my health remains essential. I will soon return to Poland to continue diagnostics and determine the next steps in this challenging situation.

“I kindly ask all fans and the sports community for understanding and support. This is an exceptionally demanding time and every gesture of encouragement means a lot to me.”

We reached out to Robert to convey our support and ask what the latest situation is.

And he told us he’s now back in Poland having further examinations and “most likely a little surgery-ablation”.

He’s also been explaining in more detail to the Polish media exactly what how things have worked out in 2024, telling WP SportoweFakty: “To be clear – I only started [training again] because doctors informed me that arrhythmia does not directly threaten my health or life.

“It is not a defect of the heart itself, and the symptoms of arrhythmia are relatively mild. For this very reason, I was counting on learning to train with it and it would not hinder me in competitions. Unfortunately, over the course of the year, I did not learn to anticipate subsequent symptoms, and they kept surprising me.

“A year ago I noticed that sometimes even during a leisurely run, my heart rate would suddenly increase from 140 to about 200 beats per minute. It wasn’t related to exertion, so at that time I thought it was just a measurement error. This year it started happening much more often, and it was accompanied by dizziness, a feeling of palpitations, I would start to have weak legs, I would get hot and feel like vomiting. However, I never fainted because of it.”

And in terms of Kona, he added: “This time, bigger problems appeared during the cycling stage, but they were slightly different than in Frankfurt. Every attempt to go into higher gear resulted in symptoms such as weakness, numbness in the hands or “cutting off the power in the legs”. After some time, I lost the feeling that further attempts to go into my maximum capacity were safe for me. And without that, there is no way to compete for high positions.”

He now hopes to have the ablation procedure, followed by two to four weeks rest and then start to build up training ahead of the 2025 season.

Last season at IRONMAN Texas he finished runner-up to Rudy von Berg and also made the top 10 in the IRONMAN World Championship in Nice. And the year before he won two 70.3 races, both in Poland – Warsaw and Poznań.

Robert Wilkowiecki 70.3 Warsaw 2022
Robert Wilkowiecki wins IRONMAN 70.3 Warsaw in 2022 [Photo Credit: Bartek Syta / IRONMAN 70.3 Warsaw]

We wish him all the best with his continued recovery and hope he’s healthy and back racing in the near future.

Jonathan Turner
Written by
Jonathan Turner
Jonathan Turner is News Director for both TRI247 and RUN247, and is accustomed to big-name interviews, breaking news stories and providing unrivalled coverage for endurance sports.  
Discover more
TRI247 podcast p/b Challenge Family episode 2
Go behind the scenes at Challenge Roth with the latest episode of the TRI247 podcast
Cadomotus Chronos triathlon cycling shoes
The triathlon cycling shoe that promises a 10-watt saving: Cadomotus Chronos Aero triathlon cycling shoes review
Challenge Family Roth
Five things you need to know about the Challenge Roth bike course
Challenge St. Pölten 2024 - image credit Jose Luis Hourcade / Challenge Family
Expert swim coach on the three most common swim mistakes age group triathletes make (and how to fix them!)
TRI-FIT VANGUARD tri suit review
The entry-level tri suit with a serious amount of performance for the price point – TRI-FIT VANGUARD review
latest News
ironman hamburg 2025 podium laura philipp kat matthews solveig lovseth beer
Challenge Roth 2025: Laura Philipp backed to make triathlon history by crashing through magical time barrier
Challenge Roth press conference 2025
Challenge Roth 2025: Date, start times, how to watch live and who’s racing
Georgia Taylor Brown wins supertri Toulouse 2024
British Olympic legend Georgia Taylor-Brown to make triathlon return
Gwen Jorgensen reflective World Triathlon Cup Vina del Mer 2023
‘Unbreakable’ Gwen Jorgensen ‘bruised’ after bike crash but vows to bounce back
IRONMAN CEO Scott DeRue Women For Tri 2024
IRONMAN announce new age-group qualification system for Kona and 70.3 Worlds
triathlon on your terms
Never miss out with our triathlon alerts & digest. Get a dose of adventure & inspiration with Boundless.
The 247 Group

The home of endurance sports

Share to...