Ironman Copenhagen and Leeds 16th Aug 2026

17 August 2026 - By Anita Grainger

Two of our members took on Ironman challenges over the weekend

Firstly  Ironman Copenhagen (Andy Notely…. you are an Ironman!)

Write up from Andy below

A year ago my wife Alana and I drove our motorhome out to Copenhagen to watch & ultimately signup for the 2026 event; and this weekend was it!

The year of countless early starts for training sessions across all 3 disciplines was finally over and we were now going to see what we could do

A ‘full’ Ironman distance involves a 3.8km open water swim, a 112 mile bike ride and then the small matter of a marathon run to finish.

The swim was one big loop of an enclosed seawater lagoon & quite sheltered, and I was delighted to get around in just under 58 minutes

After a slightly slower than hoped transition from swim to bike I was out and riding, first through the city & then out to the Danish countryside. It was pretty windy for long sections but then we got that assisting us when riding in the opposite direction of course, and with fantastic support from the locals it took the edge off of things. Again, very happy with my time on this at just over 4hrs 50

And then the run. I’ve never been the fastest, certainly not for a marathon and now to do it after the first two segments!

This was a 4 lap city based route with support that you have to see & hear from an athletes point of view to appreciate the difference it makes & how it spurs you on.

Mile after mile ticked away and my growing collection of coloured hair bands to denote each lap was eventually complete and I had my passport to cross the finish line!

Which I did, with a total race time of 9hrs 45 and even (incredibly) a marathon PB of around 26 minutes!

An epic day out, and if you are even tempted to do one I would highly recommend this event as location aside, the crowds are truly incredible!

Official times:
Swim-57:44
Bike-4:50:18
Run-3:45:02
Total-9hrs 44 min & 43 sec

 

Next up Claire Lucas Ironman Leeds (Claire Lucas…. you are an Ironman!)

Write up from Claire below

The swim being cancelled was really disappointing but after seeing the lake glowing very green it was definitely the right decision. Ironman made a very strange decision also to reduce the cuts offs which thankfully they rethought very late the night before after a lot of feedback!

The start was very different with 2 bikes every 8 seconds so took a while to get through the start line. After weeks of no rain also it started just as the race began so the roads were very slippy to begin with.

Course was 3 laps with some huge hills including the notorious Black hill 20% incline, the well known Blackhill wrestlers helped massively lining the steepest part dancing and shouting for each lap.

The run went well, the plan went out the window pretty much straight away though as I wasn’t able take on the nutrition needed but after being able to stomach the electrolytes and salty crisps at each aid station I managed to fight through the blisters and still get in under 5 hours.

Official time

Bike 7:52:31

Run 4:57;08

Total 12:57:17

 

Well done to both on such amazing acheivements & to their supporters too who were up at the crack of dawn with them, I wonder how many steps they logged moving round the courses!