Rafael Goncalves’ speed in the water could make a marlin jealous. The Brazilian attacked the Ho’ala IRONMAN Training Swim on Saturday in Kailua Bay, finishing first in the 2.4 mile event for the second consecutive year in a time of 50 minutes and 15.2 seconds.
The time was slower than his performance in the same race last year, but slightly faster than his 2014 IRONMAN World Championship pace of 51:11, where he was the first athlete out of the water. Goncalves was also first out of the water in the 2013 IRONMAN (49:38).
Goncalves was followed in the Ho’ala Training Swim by Rhett Russell (50:36.60) and Denis Chevrot (51:06.90). Lucy Charles was the top female competitor, finishing seventh overall in a time of 51:11.
“It was pretty good,” Gonvalves said of his swim Saturday morning. “This year I decided with my coach to go hard but not all out in the training swim and save my best performance for the race. I was still able to put up a decent time.”
Kailua Kona professional triathlete Bree Wee also competed in the Ho’ala Training Swim, finishing 20th in a time of 56:47.
Legendary pro surfer Sunny Garcia finished the race in a time of 1:16:15.
The Ho’ala Training Swim does just what it is designed to do, and that is give the IRONMAN World Championship athletes a taste of what to expect on race day. It also allows those not competing in the World Championships a chance to swim on nearly an identical course to the main race.
“It is a great opportunity to test the course,” Goncalves said. “Most of the athletes are here, including the many of the professionals.”
To no one’s surprise, Goncalves was a swimmer before becoming a full time triathlete and dedicating himself to all three aspects of the race. While he has naturally excelled during the first leg of the triathlon, he has struggled during the biking and running portions.
Last year, he finished 112th in his division and 612th overall after posting a bike time of 5:12:19 and a run time of 4:11:12.
This year he has much higher expectations.
“This is my third time here in Kona and I am getting better,” Goncalves said. “I have worked on my bike and run and I believe I will be able to have a much better performance this year. I am aiming for a top-10 (age group) finish.”
Saturday’s training race at Kailua Pier had a good draw with over 400 athletes competing in the training sessions for the second year in a row. There was also a good spectator turnout. The race started on the seawall side of the pier and finished on Kamakahonu Beach.