Against all odds, I crossed the finish line in first place of the 20-24 age group (and 25th overall). This was a fantastic day for me and one I hope to be fortunate enough to recount to my grand children years from now. After a rough start in the swim, I came out of the water in 1h02min, 10minutes behind the South African leader. After the first bike loop (80km) which took us up steep hills with up to 18% incline, I was only 7minutes behind the new leader, a German athlete, and 5th in my age group. After the second loop (50km), I put down the bike in 3rd place still nearly 7minutes away from the lead. After a carefull start in the run, keeping an eye on close competitors, respectively 1min20sec and 2minutes behind me, I rapidly made my way to second place. After 13km I began accellerating and took the lead around km 17. The former leader was not to be seen again as he struggled until collapse - joining the "did not finish" category as more than 20% of competitors on this hard sunny day in the mountains of Southern Bavaria! I held on, hardly believing what was happening but determined not to surrender at any cost. I was affraid to suffer from cramps and unsure that I could hold on to a sufficient pace to decisively prevent my adversaries from coming back at me. I recalled the European championship and how much I had suffered then. Echoing WSC, stopping would bring nothing while continuing might foreshadow better fortunes.The situation was now very different as I was going through hell as the virtual champion. The thought of all the hard training sessions I endured along the way and how much I wanted this victory kept me going. I crossed the line exhausted but thrilled by this unexpected success - I was hoping to do better than my 7th place in 2007. My nearest competitor crossed the finish line 8minutes later. The next challenge in my sports career shall probably be to complete an Ironman a few years from now. One day, whether it be in a near future or years from now, I hope to finish the most prestigious race of all, the Ironman of Hawai. Yet, before anything, I must graduate from university, enter a leading masters program, and develop my knowledge and understanding of international, US, French and Middle Eastern politics! I seek to inflict a strong impulse to my academic and professional curricula in order to reach a position where I will be able to make a difference. I hope to put into practice out of sport some of the lessons I learned in the challenging field of triathlon long distance.
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