Ironman South Africa 2009

Watch this video to get a glimpse of what the 2009 South Africa Ironman was like.

Soundtrack: Club foot by Kasabian.

Dedicated volunteers: Mutekile Rasmeni and Vlak Nkosinathi
(photo: Lisa MOORE).

Two of these people where Mutekile Rasmeni and Vlak Nkosinathi. Their mission was to keep the sidewalks clean and plastic-free. They had been working since 4am and were scheduled to leave at midnight.

Their designated stretch to clean started in Humewood and followed Marine Drive until the university back-entrance. Although the distance they were required to cover was daunting and the afternoon scorching, the two said that they enjoyed their job and would volunteer next year.

Despite the efforts of volunteers such as Rasmeni and Nkosinathi during the seventeen hours, many public dustbins were overflowing. This forced spectators to leave their rubbish on the sidewalks beneath the dustbins.

Photo:
Lisa WEIDEMAN.

Although the Beachfront was quickly restored to its usual tidy state on Monday, many supporters suggested that the Municipality should provide bigger dustbins during the event next year. This would help avoid overflowing dustbins which may harm Port Elizabeth’s clean reputation.

Lisa WEIDEMAN

Ironman participant fall off bike (photo: Samantha ENGLER).

Bella Bayliss last year’s Ironman 1st lady yesterday pulled out of the challenge for undisclosed medical reasons. Former champion Gerrit Schellens also could not take part in Ironman South Africa 2009 because of a hip injury. Injuries are quite common during training and the actual event. Also  not being properly attended to after the race can lead to health complications.

These are some of the pit falls cited by medical professionals that athletes are prone to;

• overtraining
• improper last minute preparation
• poor diet
• poor eating and drinking plan during the race
• poor pre-race preparation/hydration

A representative from the Ironman paramedic’s  team cited heat exhaustion as one of the most common medical problem during the event. He advised contestants to get aclimatised to the area the event is taking place well in advance. He also advised athletes to stick to their training plan on the day and to check with a health professional before and after the race.

Daisy CHIMWETA