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Lonely fight: Jan van Berkel only turns 43 at the Ironman in Hawaii. He collapses completely.
Jan van Berkel (36) takes a deep breath. After 9:00:18 hours he reached the Ironman Hawaii finish in 43rd place. His goal was the top 10. “I was in pain like never before in my life. I was in hell for nine hours, »said the Zurich native to Blick.
But what happened? It’s hard to believe. An hour before the race, Van Berkel inflates the tires on his time trial machine. He feels in better shape than ever, having acclimated to the heat and humidity of the Pacific island for two weeks. “And then I mightn’t bend down anymore. A lumbago. It hurt badly.”
The father of two is considering whether he should start at all. “I want to be a role model for my boys at home and I always tell them not to give up if something doesn’t work. Then her daddy can’t do that either.”
Nevertheless: The competition becomes a mission impossible for Van Berkel. The agony really begins on the 3.86 kilometers in the water. “I hoped that maybe everything would work itself out. The opposite was the case. Lightning hit me in the small of my back with every wave. It was like being in a torture chamber,” he says.
Jan van Berkel explains: This is how you go to the toilet during the Ironman(02:10)
Van Berkel screams in pain
Later, on the bike, it doesn’t get any better. At kilometer 70 of 180.2 the oven is off, Van Berkel has to let go of the group in which he is riding. “I felt a little better for a long time, but we almost always pedaled regarding 320 watts. This is very much. And then, when the headwind came, I mightn’t take it anymore.” Van Berkel has to leave his streamlined, deep time trial position – his back hurts too much.
“I’ve already thought regarding risking my health in the long term. It was clear to me that I mightn’t achieve anything like this,” says Van Berkel. As he gets off the bike, he screams in pain. “I wasn’t allowed to stop. In my head I switched to automatic, that was my tactic in the marathon. It was all regarding survival.”
“I hope nothing is broken”
Van Berkel’s gap to the fabulous time of Gustav Iden (26) is ultimately huge, the Norwegian sets a Hawaii record with 7:40:24 hours. “I’m disappointed, of course. Now I hope that nothing is broken », says Van Berkel. One thing is certain: For his sons Tim (2½) and Noè (2 months), he is still the tallest.