Yes, as you read it: at 80 years old, Valentin Chernov completed on September 5 the IRONMAN 70.3 in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.
He swam the 1,900 meters in 55:52; for the 90 km cycling segment he clocked 3:19:59; and he ran the half marathon in 3:07:23 for a total of 7:34:54 of effort.
But beyond his times that are merely anecdotal and beyond finishing 1st in his age group (80-84) as the only participant, we are left with his life lesson.
Because Valentin, who competes as a neutral triathlete, began in triathlon at 70 years old, after decades away from sport
Extraordinary is Valentin Chernov’s case, which reminds us of the Japanese Hiromu Inada, who keeps competing and achieving feats well into his nineties. The latest, a year ago at the IRONMAN 70.3 Cairns