Reigning Nutri-Grain IRONMAN New Zealand champion Hannah Wells is gearing up to race the Qatar Airways IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast this Sunday, September 11 – a race she has enjoyed plenty of success at over the years.

The Tauranga triathlete has recently returned from a block of training and racing in the US which culminated in a podium finish at IRONMAN 70.3 Boulder last month.

'It was great to get the opportunity to gain more international experience. I feel like New Zealand and Australian athletes have missed out on some opportunities over the last couple of years due to COVID travel restrictions, so I was eager to head overseas and do a few races to get a feel for the racing over there,” says Hannah.

'While my fitness has been building across this first half of the year and I haven't felt like I have been at peak race form going into the races, I was still in a position to do well enough to be towards the front of the races and learnt a lot as a result, so I am really glad I went over.

"Seeing the level of racing over there has made me more motivated to work hard and go back next year and try to do even better. I also had the opportunity to experience training and racing at some altitude for the first time and we learnt a lot there that will be hugely beneficial moving forward for race preparations."

Having spent the majority of the year working her way back into form and fitness, Hannah says it's exciting to feel like she's starting to peak heading into IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast this weekend.

'I think it has just been a case of time. I have been training consistently and injury free for a few months now and I think I am finally feeling the fitness benefits of that consistency. Probably also just finally acclimating to the altitude and heat in Boulder – I felt like I was training well there after about three and a half weeks of getting used to the heat and altitude. Prior to that I had been struggling to hit the hard sessions well there. So probably a combination of both those two factors,” says Hannah.

'I'm feeling more confident about Sunshine Coast than any other race so far this year. My fitness has been moving in the right direction all year and I'm finally at a stage where I am hitting some harder run sessions now, so I'm hoping that will set me up for my best run so far this year. I still think I have some way to go to get to peak fitness, but at least I can look for progress in this race."

Hannah Wells training in New Zealand before heading to Mooloolaba for IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast Photo: Graeme Murray.

IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast is a race that Wells has performed successfully at in recent years, taking out the 2019 title and finishing on the podium a further three times.

'I love the atmosphere and beachy vibe of the race venue and town of Mooloolaba. It's also a race that is relatively easy to get to, so everything around the race seems to run smoothly, so that makes it easier to race well come race day,” says Hannah.

'It would mean so much to win again. I love this race, it was my first pro race and first ever IRONMAN 70.3, so it always means a lot to race well at this one. It has been a while since I have taken the tape in an IRONMAN 70.3 and it has been a long build back to fitness for me after an injury at the end of last year, so to win would mean so much at the moment."

Having finished third at this race last year, Hannah will once again face strong competition from the two athletes that finished above her in the Netherland's Lotte Wilms and Australia's Kirra Seidel.

'Obviously Lotte and Kirra, who placed first and second last year, will be big competition. There are a few names I am unfamiliar with on the start list as well so there could be more athletes to look out for too,” says Hannah.

IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast will be the first of many Hannah hopes to race over the Oceania summer. She plans to return to Australia for GWM IRONMAN 70.3 Melbourne in November, followed by Nutri-Grain IRONMAN 70.3 New Zealand in December. Wells will use these races as stepping stones ahead of her Nutri-Grain IRONMAN New Zealand title defence in March next year.

Hannah will be joined at IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast by fellow Kiwi professional triathletes, Christchurch duo Mike Phillips and Laura Wood.

Mike, the 2019 IRONMAN New Zealand champion, has been plagued by injury for the past 12 months and was unable to finish his last professional race in January, but says he finally feels he's in a good place to race.

'I have been battling with plantar fasciitis for the last 12 months but have finally got on top of it. My training is going well but having not raced in such a long time I am sure it will be a shock to the system,” says Mike. 'It will be great to be able to get in some consistent racing over the next six months. There are plenty of opportunities coming up in the Oceania region over summer.

'After a lot of rain and cold during the Christchurch winter, the ‘Sunshine' Coast sounded very appealing. I have raced here back in my ITU days, as well as for IRONMAN 70.3 World Champs. It's an awesome course to race on."

Laura Wood juggles training as a professional athlete with her fulltime work as a lawyer. The Cantabrian raced a full season on the Asian circuit in 2019 but returned to work when she got back to New Zealand at the end of that year. However, since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, she hasn't managed to race professionally again – IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast will be her first pro race since 2019.

'I've managed to have a solid winter of training in Christchurch and have been feeling pretty good. I did manage pick up some bugs a few weeks ago so hoping to shake those by race day,” she said. 'I'm hoping for a solid hit out across all three disciplines. I've raced this course twice before so I know what I'm in for, but honestly, I suspect I may be a bit rusty,” says Laura.

To find out more about the Qatar Airways IRONMAN 70.3 Sunshine Coast visit www.ironman.com/im703-sunshine-coast