Running Another Triathlon, This One With Cancer
One of the unexpected joys of writing for the Senior Triathletes website has been meeting people like Laurent Labbe. Laurent has become a friend over the years, as he has shared his experiences with triathlon and lessons from the sport. I have followed him to numerous countries through triathlon and multi-day bike races. And, I have learned from his lessons in swimming, biking, running, nutrition and hydration.
Through our email exchanges, Laurent has introduced me to his wife and children. I have especially enjoyed seeing the ways his family has become part of the sport.
A New Challenge
So, it affected me profoundly to learn of another race Laurent has recently entered, this one against cancer.
A few weeks ago, Laurent sent me an update, a message I have come to enjoy eading. But this message was different. He began with the statement, “Unfortunately, this year was complicated for me.”
The message continued with, “All started quite well with the Hong Kong Marathon in January and my best time as an old guy (5 hours, 20 minutes) and in February, Oman IronMan [IM] 70.3. I finished, not as well as I was expecting. Running was still difficult for me.”
“I registered again for the Nice [France] full IM with my son again. (We did the 2019 version together.) But, some unpredictable events crashed my plan.”
Laurent had been training for Nice, despite “long time abdominal pain.” At the beginning of April this year, his doctors found a cancerous tumor on his colon. Through two surgeries, one in mid-April and the second at the beginning of May, the doctors removed the tumor.
Despite the surgery and thanks to Laurent’s good physical condition, he recovered fast, even surprising his doctor. He was home within one week of surgery. Two weeks after the second surgery, he was back to biking,
Then, after the oncologist confirmed the cancer during a followup in late May, Laurent began a six-month oral chemotherapy treatment.
“Of course, I had no choice but to postpone the June IM in Nice. Instead, my son and I decided to try Barcelona on October 5th this year, despite my still being under chemotherapy treatment.”
If Cancer Were Not Enough Challenge For Laurent’s Next Triathlon
Despite his recovery from surgery and some new effects of the chemotherapy, such as multiple blisters on his feet and always being tired, Laurent decided to go for a bike ride the day he was leaving Hong Kong for holidays (vacation) in France. During this ride, which followed a rainy night, his front wheel slipped on a turn resulting in him falling on the road.
“Thanks to my helmet, nothing happened on my head. But I had strong pain in my chest. I finished my ride anyway, but a few days after arriving in France, an X-ray confirmed a broken rib. So with that, I could not run, the swim was difficult (even though I did some), and biking was difficult as there was pain with every small shock from the road. During one full month, I could do nothing.
“Back in Hong Kong at the beginning of August, I was able to finally restart training, under the severe heat of Hong Kong,” wrote Laurent.
Even with the help of a remote French coach, Laurent found it difficult to return to his previous level of fitness. “I still cannot easily run 10 km or ride 40 km.”
Still, Laurent’s doctor encouraged him to continue with his plans. Besides, his internet research has produced articles supporting this decision. “The sport will reduce the side effect of the cancer medicine and it is good to do it.”
So, as the date for IRONMAN CALELLA-BARCELONA approached, Laurent made the trip to Spain. Even if he is not sure he could finish this triathlon, he was anxious to see his son and his son’s pregnant wife. She was carrying his first grandchild.
Ironman Calella-Barcelona
Laurent arrived in Barcelona from Hong Kong on Friday before Sunday’s race. The entire trip, from its beginning to arrival, was just as he had hoped, smooth and uneventful. After reconnecting with his son and daughter-in-law on Friday night, Laurent and his son planned to do some light exercise on Saturday. A mechanical issue with his son’s bike resulted in them canceling their swim practice.
Setting A Goal
Laurent wrote, “My plan was simple. Finish within 16 hours. Based on previous times, I set a goal of 2 hours for the swim and T1 and 8 hours for my bike plus T2. This still left me 6 hours for the marathon. I thought I might need this since the run was my weak part.”
Because of his lack of run training and the effect of the chemotherapy medicine, Laurent had not returned to his previous run pace. He said, “I had to go as fast as I could on the swim and bike to keep 6 hours or more for the run.”
“In reality, after many hours of training in swimming over the last months, I made an amazing time for me, 1 hour, 27 minutes. My previous PR [personal record] was 1 hour, 45 minutes. I almost caught up to my son who finished the swim in 1 hour, 22 minutes. I was feeling good.
“My plan for the swim, to stay away from the crowd of swimmers and concentrate on the stroke I had praticed, worked.” He was off to a good start, finishing 30 minutes earlier than his goal.
The story on the bike was similar. Keeping an eye on his heart rate to keep it in a safe area for him, he was able to average 26 km/hour over the 180 km course. He finished the bike leg in 6 hours, 45 minutes, more than one hour ahead of his goal.
Finishing With A Personal Record
With these results, Laurent set out on the run with confidence. He had more that seven hours to complete the three loops of the 14 km course. After running the first loop at a “very slow (7 km/hour)” pace, he increased his speed in the second loop to make the cut-off time for the third loop. This loop was difficult.
During the last 4 km of the third and final loop, Laurent’s son, who had finished earlier, joined him. While Laurent approached the end of this race, his son sprinted ahead so he could video his father crossing the finish line.
Laurent finished in 15 hours 17 minutes, well of ahead of his goal and one hour faster than his previous time for this triathlon. He wrote that he approached the finish line “with tears in my eyes as I made it. My body was full of pain, my feet full of blisters.”
Lessons From Triathlon With Cancer
Laurent wrote, “I can read other stories on [the Senior Triathletes] website [that] are very strong too.” He is referring to the amazing things other older athletes are doing, despite the challenges of age and health issues. Stories like that of Michael Morris in Cancer Can’t Slow Triathlete Down are also encouraging.
“Cancer [does] very tricky things. Day to night, you move from healthy status to a sick person, which all impacts the family, relations with your kids or your wife. It’s not easy. I’m still thinking that to keep running (in both meanings) for a race goal can be a good way to kick out the sick mindset. But not easy.”
“My older kids and some close friends followed me, encouraged me and this was great. My son’s wife was there as well, waiting for me after swim, bike, and doing the run. So good, she is so nice.”
While this triathlon was not easy, Laurent showed himself and some family that even with a cancer, even under chemotherapy, we can train and do some hard things. He said, “I wanted to shout at the arrival,’I have a cancer and I did it.’ “
Share Your Questions And Comments Below
Have you trained for a triathlon while being treated for cancer? If so, what have you learned?
Do you have questions for Laurent?
Please share your comments and questions below.
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