Lionel Sanders is considering a move to Europe later this year as he draws up specialist training plans for September’s IRONMAN World Championship in Nice, France.
The 37-year-old Canadian superstar, who lives and trains in Tucson, Arizona, is concerned the searing desert heat will not be suitable for his big-race preparations and is already seeking alternatives.
Having started the current season with two impressive wins – at IRONMAN 70.3 at Oceanside and IRONMAN 70.3 St George – he is already planning ahead for a tilt at the world title on the French Riviera.
While his calendar of events will first include IRONMAN 70.3 Eagleman on June 8 and IRONMAN in Lake Placid on July 20, it is the prospect of being able to compete for a podium place in Nice which is already exciting him.
Tucson heat a training issue
And, speaking on his latest YouTube VLOG (watch the full video at the bottom of this page), Lionel explained that Tuscon’s temperatures of close to 100F would make it difficult for him to get in the level of training he would need.
“I think it’s supposed to hit 98F today. The sun is, like, very powerful. It’s probably a UV of 12 or 13 for, like, seven straight, eighth straight hours. You get fried pretty bad.
“Is it ideal for Kona? I mean, I would say it wouldn’t be a bad thing for Kona, but this year is Nice, and I don’t think you can do much outdoor work. You would have to go out very early and the sessions can’t be super long.
“So for Nice, I don’t think it’s a good idea to train here. And so the question is, where should we go to train? And, I mean, a really logical place that we could go is Europe, potentially ride in the mountains, immerse ourselves in the culture a little bit more, because it certainly is a different culture.
“We are definitely doing some good hard thinking on possibly heading to Europe. Obviously, I’m going to do Lake Placid, so it would be after Placid, but from post-Placid through to post-Nice the question is, where should we go?”
Possible destinations for Lionel
Sanders has made a terrific start to his 2025 season and he is determined to leave nothing to chance ahead of Nice – even if he hasn’t quite decided on where in Europe he would set up camp.
“There’s obviously a lot of great places to go in Europe,” he said.
“The logical one, in my mind, for a first-timer who’s gonna actually spend some time somewhere, is Girona. I feel like everyone, every triathlete has gone to Girona at some point and it seems to be tried and tested.
“So that seems like a logical first option, to spend some time in Europe. But I could be wrong. Maybe there’s something better. Maybe there’s something even more conducive. The one thing is the mountain. If you’re going to go all the way to Europe, then at least ride in the mountains, you know?
“Andorra’s another possibility as it is pretty close to Girona as well. You could maybe even do a little bit of both. So that’s kind of where I’m leaning right now.”
Family considerations
And while his European wish list includes all the requirements you would expect for such big-race preparation, there is also the need for cultural and family time.
“I will need somewhere to do some technical riding – although I am going to also bring my rollers and will be able to do much of the quality on them – and I will need a track and a pool situation that is accessible and has decent opening hours.
“It also needs to be family friendly, as we’re bringing the little boy, and Erin’s parents are gonna come too. So if we could also have something culturally interesting, you know, to see some stuff and have some fun, eat some good food, that kind of thing.”
Sanders finished second in the 2017 and 2021 IRONMAN World Championships in Kona and St George respectively, while he also won the ITU Long Distance Triathlon World Championship in 2017.
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