From AFL Injuries to a Sub-10 Debut IRONMAN
Based in Melbourne and racing in the 25-29 age group. I joined Koa Sports in July 2024 with almost no triathlon experience. I’d spent years playing AFL and loved the team environment, but the injuries were starting to take a real toll. I needed a new challenge that still felt competitive.
Koa has pushed me to a level I genuinely didn’t think I was capable of. Every few months I’ve had to raise my own goals because I kept getting faster and stronger. Coming from a team-sport background, the training is mostly solo, yet somehow the coaches and athletes make it feel like the best team culture in triathlon—especially at race weekends. That sense of belonging has been huge for me.
I started with short-course races around Melbourne, moved into a few 70.3s, and always knew I wanted to try an Ironman one day. Finishing one would have been enough. I signed up for Ironman Busselton with that simple goal. Sixteen weeks out I set a stretch target of going under 10 hours. I crossed the line in 9:55.
Melbourne winters are cold, dark and unpredictable, so sessions often need to move indoors or get reshuffled at short notice. The coaches handle those changes quickly and keep everything updated without drama. That practical flexibility has made consistent training possible even when the weather tries to wreck the week.
If you’re coming from another sport, relatively new to triathlon, and want coaching that will keep raising the bar while still feeling like you’re part of a proper team, Koa Sports is the place. It turned a “just finish” goal into a sub-10 Ironman debut and showed me how much more is possible.
