Former F1 driver Alex Zanardi added another feat to his inspirational story at the weekend after he finished just outside the top 10% at the Ironman World Championship using just the power of his arms.
Zanardi lost both his legs and nearly his life in a horrific 2001 CART crash but has remained active in sport since, winning Paralympic gold at London 2012 in handcycling. The Italian, attempting his first-ever triathalon event, completed the famous Kailua-Kona event in Hawaii on October 11, 272nd out of 2,187 finishers.
The Kona event consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride and a 26.2-mile marathon run. Zanardi utilised a wet vest which kept his body floating for the swimming portion, before he took to a self-developed handcycle to finish the biking segment. The Ironman was completed on an Olympic wheelchair, crossing the line in nine hours, 47 minutes and 14 seconds.
"It is fantastic and I will treasure this day in my heart for the rest of my life," Zanardi said. "The last 300 meters were worth everything, they were worth being here for. I don't know if everybody got cheered the same way, but when I passed down that narrow lane, I have never experienced anything like that. It was amazing. I was always close to crying. I am not an emotional guy for these types of things, but this was very special."
Read more at http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/stor ... Jhe1Ph1.99
Zanardi lost both his legs and nearly his life in a horrific 2001 CART crash but has remained active in sport since, winning Paralympic gold at London 2012 in handcycling. The Italian, attempting his first-ever triathalon event, completed the famous Kailua-Kona event in Hawaii on October 11, 272nd out of 2,187 finishers.
The Kona event consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bicycle ride and a 26.2-mile marathon run. Zanardi utilised a wet vest which kept his body floating for the swimming portion, before he took to a self-developed handcycle to finish the biking segment. The Ironman was completed on an Olympic wheelchair, crossing the line in nine hours, 47 minutes and 14 seconds.
"It is fantastic and I will treasure this day in my heart for the rest of my life," Zanardi said. "The last 300 meters were worth everything, they were worth being here for. I don't know if everybody got cheered the same way, but when I passed down that narrow lane, I have never experienced anything like that. It was amazing. I was always close to crying. I am not an emotional guy for these types of things, but this was very special."
Read more at http://en.espnf1.com/f1/motorsport/stor ... Jhe1Ph1.99
