Location: Louisville, Kentucky.

Distances:

Swim: 1.2 miles (downriver in the Ohio River).
Bike: 56 miles (through the rolling hills of Oldham County).
Run: 13.1 miles (through downtown streets and parks, including Cherokee Park, finishing at Fourth Street Live!).

Course Highlights:

Swim: A unique, spectator-friendly course starting near River Park Place Marina with a refreshing downstream swim in the Ohio River, finishing at the Great Lawn in Waterfront Park.
Bike: A scenic course leaving Louisville along River Road and continuing into the beautiful countryside of Oldham County, featuring rolling hills and returning to Waterfront Park for the second transition.
Run: Takes athletes through various areas of Louisville, including the shaded Cherokee Park, and finishes at the iconic Fourth Street Live! Downtown.
How did it go?
For me, this event was 5 weeks before Ironman Cozumel 70.3. My daughter and I drove 2 hours from home the day before the event.
In Louisville in 2018, I completed my first Full Ironman, finishing 8th in the Pro category. In 2023, I placed Second Overall at the Kentucky Triathlon Championship.
The Swim: I felt excellent during the swim, I came 2nd in my age group and 10th overall out of the water.
The Bike: The bike course had a few hills, and I was trying to stay consistent. After half of the course, many other males started getting too close, making it hard to maintain the “non-drafting rule distance”. Seven athletes, three females and four males, got a “Blue Card”, so we all needed to stop for five minutes at the penalty tent; if we didn’t, we would be disqualified.
In IRONMAN triathlon events, the non-drafting rule means athletes must maintain a clear space of 12 meters (or six bike lengths) between their front wheel and the rear wheel of the bike in front, except when passing. Passing must be completed within 25 seconds, and athletes must pass on the left, not the right. Drafting is not permitted and can result in time penalties. In Ironman 70.3 events, drafting penalties in 2024 were five-minute time penalties, according to the 2024 athlete guide. In 2025, Ironman has reduced drafting penalties, aligning with World Triathlon rules. For full Ironman events, a drafting penalty (Blue Card violation) now results in a 3-minute time penalty, reduced from 5 minutes. For Ironman 70.3 events, the penalty is now 2 minutes, also down from 5 minutes.
So sadly, I got a FIVE-MINUTE penalty, now that “error” is just TWO MINUTES, I remember I was a bit discouraged, but I took those 5 min along with the group to breathe, drink some water, and reflect, we all stopped almost at the same time, and ran together to the Transition.
The Half Marathon: At the first 3 miles, I felt good, but then during some hills, I started to feel dehydrated and struggled with negative thoughts. I remember asking myself, "am I temporarelly mentally burned out?, because physically I am sure I am very strong!" I started to drink as much as possible at all Aid Stations, and keeping a steady rhythm, after the first 7 miles, I started to get strength and a faster pace, I remember around mile 8 a lady yelled at me in one of the Louisville Downtown avenues, where I was running almost on an empty street: “YOU GO GIRL, YOU TRAIN SO HARD FOR THIS!” That message gave me strength. By then, I was increasing the pace, going negative split until the finish line.
After all these challenges, I was shocked and happy that I finished 4th in my category.
Ps. More and better images from this Ironman are coming soon.

IRONMAN 70.3 Louisville | 2024