{"id":18332,"date":"2022-10-09T12:43:58","date_gmt":"2022-10-09T10:43:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.220triathlon.com\/?p=115976"},"modified":"2022-10-09T12:59:09","modified_gmt":"2022-10-09T10:59:09","slug":"joe-skipper-sees-top-five-as-a-stepping-stone-to-kona-podium","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/220triathlon\/rss_feed\/joe-skipper-sees-top-five-as-a-stepping-stone-to-kona-podium\/","title":{"rendered":"Joe Skipper sees top five as a stepping stone to Kona podium"},"content":{"rendered":"

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By Tim Heming\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Sunday, 09 October 2022 at 12:00 am<\/p>

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Joe Skipper<\/a> improved by one position from his last appearance in Hawaii with a fifth-place finish in 7:54:04 on 8 October \u2013 and says next time he\u2019ll be eyeing a top three.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While 14mins behind new Ironman world champ<\/strong><\/a> Gustav Iden<\/strong><\/a>, it was still a 13min improvement on his time from 2019 as he went past picked up three places in the final miles \u2013 blasting by Magnus Ditlev<\/strong><\/a>, Leon Chevalier and Sebastian Kienle<\/strong><\/a> in a rampaging finish.<\/p>\n

A second wind<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cI\u2019d have liked to have got top three, but I\u2019ll take it as a stepping stone,\u201d he said. \u201cI really found it hot out there and I was done with Kona after 12 miles of the run.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut I got a second wind with 6 miles to go and that was the highlight of my race!\u201d<\/p>\n

Skipper had been forced to miss the first Ironman World Championship of the year in Utah with Covid and won Ironman Wales<\/strong><\/a> under a month ago.<\/p>\n

The 34-year-old has now finished seventh, sixth and fifth in successive Kona racers and became the only British male finisher after David McNamee<\/strong><\/a> dropped out on the run.<\/p>\n

I smashed it on the last bit and was totally f***** crossing the line but I managed it <\/blockquote> <\/div> <\/div> <\/div>\n<\/div>

A 52:54 swim saw him exit the water in 38th place but only 4:30mins down on the lead. He then posted a 4:11hr bike split and backed it up with the day\u2019s sixth fastest marathon of 2:45:25.<\/p>\n

Pretty cooked<\/strong><\/h2>\n

\u201cThe swim was okay. I got a really good start and was up the front for a while, but kept getting knocked back down,\u201d he added. \u201cIt felt easy but it was just a shame we didn\u2019t have anyone who was a bit faster setting the pace.<\/p>\n

\u201cI then rode pretty hard and was pretty cooked when I caught Cameron Wurf<\/strong><\/a>. Going up towards Hawi it was chaos as we overtook a massive group and it felt pretty much full pelt and then Chevalier put in a big dig and dropped me \u2013 I was going 420watts and got left behind.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut it was a tailwind all the way back and I sat at my own pace and tried to feel comfortable.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had an okay run at the start, then got hot and couldn\u2019t run fast. With six miles to go coming out of the energy lab I was in eighth and getting run down by Clement Mignon.<\/p>\n

\u201cGiven the last bit is downhill, I went full gas to the top of Palani to see if I could get a top five.\u00a0I smashed it on the last bit and was totally f***** crossing the line but I managed it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Top image credit:<\/strong> Ezra Shaw\/Getty Images for Ironman<\/p>\n

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