Matt’s Ironman World Championships Trip

Hi friends! My name is Matthew Roeder and one of my hobbies is participating in triathlons. Last year I started racing triathlons and worked up to compete in my first ever Ironman Race. My main goal was to just finish the 140.2 mile race. I ended up in 6th place in my age group. The top 5 are invited to the annual Ironman World Championship held traditionally in the fall. I did not believe I would place this well after my first race. I left eager to continue training, hoping I will next time get a bid to compete at the highest level. The Ironman Race is a 2.4 mile swim, 112.6 mile bike ride and ends with a 26.2 mile run. The World Championships are traditionally in Kona, Hawaii but for the first time ever, they are taking it to Nice, France for 2023. Where the triathlon sport originated.Fast forward to April 2023, Ironman informed me that a slot fell down and I was next in line to receive a bid to this year’s World Championship Men’s Race in Nice, France! I jumped at the amazing opportunity and instantly accepted the chance to race again sooner than expected. I am beyond excited to test my abilities against such a diverse and distinguished group of athletes, being just the 27th youngest in the field of 1500+ participants and 1 of 300 total Americans representing the United States in the race. The spontaneity of my qualification made it hard for me to allocate savings for this once in a lifetime trip. With international flights, lodging, competition fees, bike transport etc. I realized I need to do everything I can to make this trip happen as it is only months away. The race is broadcasted on NBC and you can tune in to watch throughout the day on September 10th 2023. It will truly be an honor to represent the Main Line community on a world stage. I hope you can help me make history in Nice, France at the 2023 Men’s Ironman World Championship.