The VinFast Ironman World Championship Saturday had moments of chaos, where one after another athletes crossed the finish line, with some dancing and others collapsing.
But each of the approximately 2,300 participants that crossed the finish line on Aliʻi Drive in Kona on Saturday heard their name and the announcer saying “You are an Ironman.” This included at least 13 of the 16 triathletes from the Big Island that participated this year in the grueling 140.6-mile swim, bike and run race.
Laurentiu Grigore, 46, of Waikōloa finished the Ironman World Championship in 2017 and 2022, and this year had the goal to complete the course in under 11 hours.
“I don’t know if I did it, but I think I almost did it, I don’t know,” he said as he walked through the grounds of the King Kamehameha Kona Beach Resort, wrapped in an Ironman towel to get food, hydration and rest.
According to the Ironman Athlete Tracker app, Grigore came in at 10:57:55, placing 198th out of 339 in his age group and 1,225th overall in what he thought was fantastic weather.
“It was overcast, although there was a little bit of wind,” Grigore said, adding on the way back to town on the bike it was windier than he wanted.
“But you know, you cannot have all the perfect conditions,” Grigore said. “But I think this was like the most overcast of all the previous Ironmans.”
Grigore was particularly proud of his run, saying he couldn’t believe he pushed so hard.
“I wanted to go under four hours on the run, and I did,” he said.
Kaiden Lieto, 21, of Kona was the first Kona athlete to cross the finish line.
Lieto clocked in at 9:58:12, placing 41st out of 59 for the 18-24 age group. He finished his swim in 52:17, followed by a 5:45:04 bike and a 4:07:24 marathon.
Thirty-year-old Michael Kemp of Kona finished his first Ironman World Championship with a time of 13:23:13, placing 200th out of 204 in the 30-34 age group despite starting the day being stung by a jellyfish.
Walking back toward the hotel he said he felt accomplished and happy for himself.
“I had a couple moments where I didn’t think I’d finish,” Kemp said. “Mile 85 on the bike and mile 21 on the run. They were tough.”
Kemp said his body was turning off and he had to find a “new on switch.”
One reason to keep going was for his fundraising. As a member of the Team Ironman Foundations fundraising team, Kemp said the hardest part of the Ironman was raising nearly $27,000 that will go toward volunteerism grants and keiki in the community.
“I feel appreciative of everyone from my family, friends, to volunteers, coworkers, community,” Kemp said.
At the end of it all, Kemp said every one should try hard things.
“I don’t have to do this every year, but I mean, try it. Who cares if you don’t finish? Just give it a shot,” Kemp said. “Go to the start line.”
Toi “Gary” Wong of Kona had been trying for three years to get into Ironman. On Saturday, he finished the iconic race with a time of 12:23:09.
The 49-year-old, who is a housing and community development specialist with Hawaiʻi County, placed 270th out of 335 for the 45-49 age group.
After walking off the carpet at the finish line, Wong said he was tired, but happy he finished.
Wong also was stung by jellyfish on his neck and face.
“Many people got stung in the water, but perfect weather today,” said Wong, a native of Malaysia.
To read about the pro athletes in the 2024 Ironman World Championship, click here.
Here are the list of the 13 Ironman World Championship finishers from the Big Island as of 10 p.m. Saturday:
Andrew Loeb did not finish the race within the cutoff time.
