Completing the Ironman Swansea 70.3 to me wasn’t just another race; it was the culmination of a decade-long journey of participating in triathlons on home turf as well.
Ten years ago, I stood at Knab Rock in Mumbles, determined to beat my friend, who got me into running, to complete a triathlon first. From that super sprint triathlon, I caught the bug for the sport and competed in my local triathlons (Mumbles and Swansea) annually.
In 2018, I decided to do my first Olympic distance triathlon, another local one, the Gower Triathlon, which featured a brutal run with stretches over soft sand and an incredibly steep hill that truly tested my resolve. Later that year, I moved to Cardiff for my master’s degree and joined the Cardiff Uni Tri Club. This club gave me my first exposure to regular structured training and a fuller racing season.
In 2020, I moved to Gloucestershire for work and fell out of my rhythm with triathlons, only completing one between 2020 and 2023. However, I felt the urge at the start of 2024 and made a good decision joining Tri Team Glos, building back up last year with a couple of sprints and an Olympic distance race. The FOMO (fear of missing out) from seeing fellow club members taking part in the longer Ironman events was strong. So, I set the target of returning to my hometown to take part in the Ironman Swansea 70.3 2025, swimming, riding, and running on the same roads where I fell in love with triathlons.
2025 started off with a group trip to Cyprus. I was feeling good, having made the effort to properly train over winter despite picking up an issue with my calves. A few days before the Ayia Napa triathlon, we did a 180km bike ride. It was a long, hot day in the saddle with some beautiful scenery, leading to my first century and full distance bike ride. Then came the first Olympic distance of the year: a beautifully clear sea for the swim, followed by a strong bike leg and a blisteringly hot run due to the relentless sun beating down. I felt it was a strong start to the year.
Back in Britain, my season continued with the Somerset Sportive. This involved about 120km of flattish roads, followed by a climb up Cheddar Gorge and a 40km ride back to the start. The 51fiver quickly followed with another strong performance and lots of TTG support. The Swansea swim followed the next week. What was supposed to be a test run for the Ironman 70.3 swim was changed to a three-lap swim in the bay in rough conditions. After an hour and a half, the advertised 3km swim was completed (my watch said 4.5km, but it has been known to be wrong). Blenheim Palace Triathlon and the Cotswolds Big Swim rounded out my season leading up to the 70.3.
Race Week
Being caught up in the DS3 “Stop Driving Alert” (an urgent safety recall) was less than ideal preparation one week out. Luckily, it didn’t stop me from getting a last-minute service/check on my bike. Hannah also helped me get to a final swim session in GL1. My parents then picked me up on Thursday afternoon.
Friday midday, I headed down to register. After taking the obligatory photo with the iconic M-dot, finding my name in the logo and trying (and failing) to make it through the merch tent without needing to remortgage the house, I made it to registration. As soon as the wristband went on, it started to feel real.
Saturday, bags packed and off to transition. The Swansea Triathlon has its transition in the same car park, but felt like a much bigger event with the bikes tightly packed onto the racks. Never having done a triathlon where there is a bag for each transition, the tent looked clean, with no fighting for space. A pizza and an unbearably warm night followed as last minute race prep.
Race Day
The alarm went off at 4 am. I always prefer to wake up earlier than others on race days. I had some breakfast, put on my trisuit, and headed down to the city centre, past the bollards, ready to close the roads for the race. I managed to catch most of the team pre-race in the swim pens for last-minute well wishes before making my way into the pen.
Swim
Finally walking down the pontoon to the start, it truly felt real. Then the countdown and into the water. My first thought was “what am I doing”, but there was no time to think about that now. Just put one arm in front of the other and keep going. Charlie and Mel’s tips from the coached swims were going through my head. I reached the swim exit and began the first run of the day. This was the least important run and quite possibly my strongest, passing people left and right. Across the Sail Bridge was my first encounter with the TTG support crew, who were out in force.
Bike
After coming out of transition, I was feeling strong. The lights on my Wahoo computer were set to show heart rate so I could always try and make sure I wasn’t going too mad at any point. The flat road around to Mumbles seemed to fly past, and after reaching Knab Rock, the climbs started. After the first few climbs, I saw my mate Rowan on the edge of the road, which was definitely the first mental pick-me-up on the bike. After the swoop down past Caswell Bay and the steepest section of the bike course, I passed my sister’s house. My sister, brother-in-law, nephews, and niece were all out in force to cheer as I went past. Luckily, the first of the aid stations wasn’t too far away as I’d already lost a bottle early on. My first attempt at taking a bottle while riding: 10/10 – who says don’t try anything new on race day?
When reaching Cefn Bryn for the first time, I heard someone say, “Oh Tri Team Glos, you better watch out, Adey is coming” – very ominous words. After the descent, at about 40km into the bike, pwwwack, Adey gave me a little notification that he was passing me. At the start of the second, smaller loop at around 50km, I started to get a bit of cramp in my quads; once that set in, I felt it for the rest of the day. At around 57km, Steve passed me. The rest of the bike leg was all about survival and preparing for the run, seeing family just after the last hill in Bishopston and then my parents in Mayals just before the final descent helped spur me on.
Run
I changed into my compression socks and trainers, and off I went. The heat on the bike didn’t bother me, but as soon as I got out on the run, it hit me. That run was excruciating, but I just kept thinking one thing: just keep moving and don’t stop. I did just that – one foot in front of the other; the water sprays were lifesavers, keeping me cool. Every aid station followed the same pattern: two water cups over the head, drink one electrolytes and a coke, then another water down my back. Jish passed at the now traditional 6km mark of the run, not long after the first turning.
Tom soon caught up with me, but as he was doing run/walk, we ended up crossing over a few times, each time “Go on Adam” and “Go on Tom” were shared.
At around the second turn to start the second lap, it became a mental battle for me. Everything wanted to stop, but at the same time, I wanted to finish the race. As soon as I could see the Swansea Arena in the distance, I knew the finish line was just behind it. My pace increased with everything screaming inside. I reached the red carpet, crossed the finish line, and claimed my medal.
I had finished my first middle distance/70.3. The emotions were running high, and I could barely keep myself together. I’d just completed something that only a few years ago I never thought I’d be able to do as it seemed such a big step up from an Olympic distance.
Diolch yn fawr (thank you very much) to all the TTG coaches, the TTG support crew who were in Swansea it truly made a difference on the day, and everyone in the club. It truly is Gloucestershire’s friendliest tri club.
Swim: 39:36
T1: 10:12
Bike: 3:41:11
T2: 13:44
Run: 2:38:02
Total: 7:21:43
