Modern Athlete Magazine Issue 124, November 2019 | Page 58

MULTISPORT
Doggy Paddle to IRONMAN
With 1800 women competing in IRONMAN South Africa’s triathlon events this year, compared to the 1600 who took part in 2017, it
is clear that the sport of triathlon is growing rapidly amongst women in this country. One of these courageous women is local
entrepreneur and mother of two, Amanda Shaw, who is proving daily that anything is possible if you keep moving forward.
“However, when I started off, I couldn’t swim, I could
only doggy paddle, and I was terrified of open water
swimming. Now I can confidently get into the water.
I am not the fastest swimmer, but I get the job done.
My attitude is that the swim leg is by far the shortest
discipline out of the three. You don’t have to be good
at it – just survive it and get onto that bike and run. I
found that a lot of newbies feel quite threatened by
the swim, but it’s not too bad once you are out there.”
both races, and says, “I was devastated. I was new to
cycling and both bike courses are tough. However, I
was not going to give up, so I entered both again the
following year!” Amanda went on to finish both races
in 2013, and has now finished five IRONMAN and
seven IRONMAN 70.3 events to date.
“Triathlon is a lifestyle of being fit, of being disciplined,
and building strong friendships with strangers who
become friends. I have done a total of 12 IRONMAN-
branded events and also did the Standard Bank 5150
Nelson Mandela Bay twice. I started off not being able
to swim, not knowing how to ride a bike, on top of
Another aspect of the swimming leg that frightened
her at first was the often chaotic race starts. “When I
first started triathlons, it used to be mass starts. Now
they have changed it to rolling starts, where you get to
self-seed yourself according to your swim time. I am
glad they have introduced the rolling starts, because
I used to be terrified out there when it was a mass
start. It’s also much better for the first-timers who are
super nervous for the swim, and the rolling starts help
everyone, in my opinion.”
If at First...
Amanda’s IRONMAN journey began in 2012 when she
registered for both the Standard Bank IRONMAN 70.3
South Africa in Buffalo City and the Standard Bank
IRONMAN African Championship in Nelson Mandela
Bay. Unfortunately, she missed the bike cut-off time in
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ISSUE 124 NOVEMBER 2019 / www.modernathlete.co.za
being a mother of two and running my own business.
If you had told me eight years ago that I would have
completed five IRONMAN full distance events, I would
have laughed at you, but anything is possible. There
are plenty of people out there who can help you
achieve whatever goals you have in my mind, so you
don’t have to do it alone. And you can do whatever
you set your mind to, just believe in yourself and
persevere through.”
Chasing Podiums
2018 saw Amanda podium in her age group category
(55-59 years) for the first time at the Standard Bank
Smile
T
he triathlon bug bit Amanda in 2010 when she
entered the Isuzu Corporate Triathlon Challenge
powered by Algoa FM. “I did the 18km cycle
leg in a team of three, and I did it on a mountain bike
worth R800 and just in a pair of takkies, no cleats.
The following year I entered the IRONGIRL Series and
did the 8km run. My background is running, and my
running club had a lot of triathletes doing IRONMAN,
so I thought I should give it a try,” says Amanda.