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HOKA Instagram takeover with David McNamee

Like all of us, HOKA athlete David McNamee is managing the current global situation the best he can. Based in Girona, Spain, he has followed government advice and stayed at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. Follow the story below as David took over the HOKA EU Instagram account to show us what life is like as a pro athlete at this uncertain time.

The two-time IRONMAN World Championship bronze medallist walked us through his new normal in a country where a state of emergency was declared almost two weeks ago.

With total lockdown on any outdoor activity in Spain, it was time for David to rethink and adapt his training. For somebody whose job it is to run, swim and cycle many hours and kilometres each week, the current situation presents a unique challenge.

“The main thing I’ve learned is to only worry about what I can control,” says David. With one run on the treadmill and two sessions on the bike planned during the day, David used Zwift for extra motivation knowing that others were joining him for the ride.

David threw the floor open for followers to ask him anything they wanted. Find out what David’s favourite session is, his three fantasy dinner guests, his best training partner over the years and more by watching back the Instagram Story Highlight.

Every night in Spain, people gather on their balconies to applaud and show their appreciation for the front-line staff working to help combat the virus. As David pointed out, in times of uncertainty, it’s time to act responsibly and adapt our training. It will soon be time to fly again.

Photo credit: Oriol Batista and David McNamee

IRONMAN Hamburg in pictures

We were live in Hamburg last weekend for the latest stop in the 2019 IRONMAN series.

Our friendly team was on hand to talk all things HOKA ONE ONE with the thousands of athletes and spectators in town for the event.

Every man, woman (and their dog) had the chance to try out the latest HOKA shoes, including the Clifton 6, Carbon X and the ultra-light, uber-cushioned speedster, Rincon.

Our four elite athletes, Arnaud Guilloux, Susie Cheetham, Horst Reichel and Katharina Grohmann, were on hand to meet and greet fans at the HOKA stand…

…before grabbing their numbers and preparing to test themselves over the 3.8km swim, 183km bike ride and 42.2km run the next day.

Horst started strongly on the swim and bike before fading, while Arnaud moved through the field and eventually finished fourth.

Wearing the Carbon X, Arnaud clocked the second-fastest marathon time in the pro race, running 2 hours, 55 minutes and 5 seconds.

In the women’s race, Katharina was consistent throughout and finished sixth despite suffering stomach problems from the beginning.

But there was absolutely no stopping Susie.

Susie was in a podium position from start to finish, though it was on the bike where she really excelled.

With the fastest bike time and a healthy advantage coming out of T2, Susie flew round the course and won by almost three minutes ahead of her nearest rival.

Next stop for us: IRONMAN 70.3 World Championships in Nice on 7-8 September.

Photo credit: Activ Images | James Mitchell

Antoine and Olivier united by shared ambition

Teamwork makes the dream work, as the saying goes. But what are the characteristics of a successful sporting partnership?

Friendship must be one. Trust another. Unity and compassion a couple more. Striving together towards a shared ambition certainly requires a special understanding.

For HOKA athletes Antoine Pérel and Olivier Lyoen, these characteristics form the backbone of their tandem triathlon ambitions.

The duo have made huge strides in the short time that they’ve been training and competing together, though their backgrounds could not be more different.

Following a different path

Once joking that “my longest distance is 100 metres”, Antoine Pérel has far exceeded that in recent years.

Always active in his youth, he used to dream of becoming a professional football player like his father. But this wasn’t to be Antoine’s sporting path.

Antoine was diagnosed with cone dystrophy at the age of 10. The condition is an inherited disorder of the eye and affects a person’s ability to see colour and fine detail. At first, Antoine didn’t realise he couldn’t see anymore like everybody else.

As his condition got worse, Antoine was forced to abandon his football dreams and stopped playing the game five years later.

Success in a new sport

Sporting ambition still burned inside. At the age of 16, undeterred by his failing sight, Antoine turned his attention to athletics – and with remarkable success.

For several years, Antoine was one of the best five long jumpers in his category in the world. He held the U23 age-group world record and was the French national champion for more than a decade from 2005 to 2016.

He reached the pinnacle of his career when he competed at the 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing. But after the discipline he competed in was removed from the Paralympics schedule in Rio eight years later, Antoine turned his back on track and field.

This second twist of fate set Antoine’s sporting path in another new direction.

Waiting for the opportunity

For Olivier, his partnership with Antoine is an opportunity that has been a long time coming.

From 2002 to 2008, Olivier volunteered to act as a guide to visually-impaired athletes. However, he was never called into action.

Eight years later, after a professional career that spanned three appearances at the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona, the call finally came.

“I stopped triathlon in 2008 because my son was small and I wanted to dedicate more time to my family,” recalls Olivier.

“I did the same amount of running but it was only in 2015 that I decided to resume triathlon. I won my age category at the French Championships, qualified for IRONMAN Wales and competed at Xterra Malta.

“Guiding Antoine is much more rewarding than continuing to do triathlon alone. I achieved all the challenges that I set myself in this sport apart from taking part in the Olympics. The ambition now is to make it with Antoine.” Olivier Lyoen

“The next year, I spent a month living and training in Hawaii with my wife and children. It was after this that the call came.”

Coming together as one

While Olivier was living in the south Pacific, Antoine was taking the first steps in his triathlon career in northern France.

In a session run by the French Triathlon Federation designed to unearth promising talent, Antoine’s potential was there for all to see. The only sticking points? He had to find a tandem, a guide and learn how to swim.

Cue, Olivier.

“I train Antoine very seriously,” says Olivier.

“We found the budget to finance travel and equipment and started competing together in 2017. Before we knew it, we’d achieved two podium finishes in Paratriathlon World Cup events and won the Open World Championship in Rotterdam.

“Guiding Antoine is much more rewarding than continuing to do triathlon alone. I achieved all the challenges that I set myself in this sport apart from taking part in the Olympics. The ambition now is to make it with Antoine.”

United by shared ambition

The fledgling duo have made great progress over the last twelve months and are currently ranked 15^th in the world. Tokyo 2020 is not such a pipe dream.

Antoine will soon become a father for a second time. Despite their stretched financial resources, Antoine and Olivier have a dream to realise.

“We are united by this project to take part and win a medal at the Olympics, much like two brothers united by name.” Olivier Lyoen

“Our relationship is very strong,” asserts Olivier. “We are united by this project to take part and win a medal at the Olympics, much like two brothers united by name who carry a family project.

“We look out for and take care of each other because we are a team.”

Photo credit: Peignée Verticale

HOKA ambassador Kilian dreams big and conquers Kona

Kilian Limmer achieved his dream and conquered IRONMAN Kona last month. But his journey hasn’t been without its setbacks. Read Kilian’s story below and find out why he proves that anything in life is possible if you dream big.

Saturday 23 June 2007. This day changed my life forever.

I am the guy in the middle of the front row in the image below. As you can see, my left eye is closed. What you can’t see is that my left orbital floor – or eye socket – is fractured and that I suffered a traumatic brain injury and concussion while playing football. I was hit by the elbow of an opponent.

After this accident, I wasn’t allowed to move my head too quickly. I was in the hospital for one week and had to use a wheelchair for the next two weeks. At home, I couldn’t read anything or watch TV because it was too exhausting for my eye and my brain. I wasn’t allowed to do any kind of sport for the next four months.

Dreaming big

I started to gain a lot of weight. As a motivation to start running and to lose weight again, I decided to register for the local 10k race in my hometown at the end of September 2009. I did about five training runs before the race and finished in a time of 54 minutes. Not so bad.

One month later, I watched IRONMAN Hawaii for the first time. I thought that the efforts of all the athletes were unreal and that this race was unattainable for me. But I started to dream of it. The race was in my head almost every day. No joke. I couldn’t stop thinking about it, so I registered for my first triathlon race in June 2011.

I watched IRONMAN Hawaii for the first time. I thought that the efforts of all the athletes were unreal and that this race was unattainable for me. But I started to dream of it. Kilian Limmer

But by the end of 2010, I learned that I had a congenital heart defect and needed to undergo heart surgery. My heart rate was going crazy high, up to 230 beats-per-minute, and not even during training, but during my lunch or homework. I had surgery in April 2011 and received the all-clear from the doctors to start training for my first triathlon race three months later.

Road to recovery

I finished third in my age category in my first triathlon. That was cool! It certainly gave me the motivation to carry on. I loved this feeling of suffering and getting rewarded for it. I did my first Olympic-distance race in 2012 and my first middle-distance race to next year. This was when I decided to stop playing football and to concentrate on triathlon.

I increased my training and gave it more structure. I was lucky to become a HOKA Flyer at the end of 2016, which was an extra boost as I felt a bit more professional. My journey with HOKA began and I am so thankful for that.

My next goal was to go ‘all-in’ for the Kona slot and so I registered for IRONMAN Austria 2017. The preparation went really well and I was feeling fit like never before. The race was good, I had good legs and the run of my life ,with a time of 3 hours and 9 minutes for the marathon. But that wasn’t enough. I finished second and missed the slot by about six minutes.

But the fire was still burning.

Completing the journey

I registered again the following year and this time, came out on top. I took the lead on the run with still 21 kilometres to go and pain in my entire body. I didn’t know if there was still a guy behind me. I focused on the nutrition and the technique and finally reached the finish line with the Kona slot in my pocket.

I was so overwhelmed by my emotions. I was sitting in the finish area and cried for about 15 minutes. My parents and friends were waiting for me and I was so happy to give them something back.

“Kona was really just the icing on the cake. I wanted to feel the mystery of the island. Because Kona was the place where the sport was born – and where my journey started. Kilian Limmer

After one month of recovery, I started training for the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona. Training went really well. My goals were to finish the race in under 10 hours and to run the whole marathon without walking. I achieved both of these goals.

But the race was really just the icing on the cake. I wanted to feel the mystery of the island. Because Kona was the place where the sport was born – and where my journey started.

Kilian finished 15th in the 18-24 age category in Kona. Kilian raced in the HOKA Hupana Slip and is already looking forward to returning to the island and racing faster in 2019. Follow Kilian on Instagram.