Monique van der Vorst will be the 1st woman to compete in this grueling event as a para-triathlete since 1998 when the late Julia Wallace finished in a time of 13.31.14. Van der Vorst hopes to crush this time and also beat the men's record which was set by Carlos Moleda in 2005 in a time of 10.30.55. In order to do this, she is planning to complete the swim leg in 2.5 hours, the handcycle leg in 6.5 hours (averaging 17.5 mph), and finish in the racing chair in 2.5 hours. This will be incredible if she can pull this off considering that in April 2008 Monique was struck by a car while on a training ride on her handcycle. She suffered a T4 compression fracture which resulted in an incomplete SCI injury on top of her existing disability.
 
Over the years, many Team Invacare athletes have competed at this epic event: a 2.4 mile swim, 112.5 mile handcycle, and 26.2 mile marathon. These athletes include: John McClean, Scott McNeice, David Bailey and Carlos Moleda.
 
Did you know that the triathlon is the only sport where disabled athletes are racing together, in the same event, on the same course, at the same time, under the same rules and conditions as able-bodied athletes? That is one thing that makes the Ironman Triathlon a great and really unique competition, a level playing field for athletes of all abilities.

 

Track Monique as she competes in the Ironman in Hawaii.  From the time she leaves the water -- about 8:15a Hawaii time -- you can follow her by looking up her name at the following:

 

Web or iPhone:  http://www.MapMyAthlete.com/vemap.aspx?name=046651

 

Blackberry or Palm:  http://www.MapMyAthlete.com/pda.aspx?name=046651

 

(If you are using a Blackberry, you may need to download Opera Mini first at: http://www.opera.com/mini/download.)

 

Read more about the Handcycle Ironman history.