PEOPLE » MICHAEL & LAUREN CANNON
months with two active little girls to
look after, and torture not to be able
to break a single drop of sweat. But it
was also exciting to finally get rid of
the excruciating pain that throbbed
from morning to night. Scarlett had
told everyone that her mommy had
an “ouchie sore foot” but when it was
better, she was going to run and chase
her again.
After what seemed like a lifetime
of physio and rehabilitation, my foot
started to heal. The worst part about
not wearing a plaster cast anymore
was that everyone thought I was back
to normal, when in fact every day was a
massive struggle for me, both physically,
emotionally and mentally. I tried to stay
positive and just kept my eye on the
ultimate prize, which was getting back to
cycling and running again. The doctors
and physios gave me back my cycling
shoes at the beginning of November,
and said that on 3 December I could do
my first 1km run. It was incredible to be
able to ride with my husband again.
On 9 January, I hit the startline of
the KwaZulu-Natal Triathlon Champs,
expecting nothing but a finish. I was
very unprepared. I had no wetsuit,
no aero helmet, no aero bike and a tri
suit that was bought that morning. I
just wanted to be normal again and
compete. I was ecstatic with an overall
win and knew then and there that I was
ready to make a comeback. Taking the
win at SA Tri Champs was very special,
and I’m excited to be going to Worlds in
September.
54
“WE HAVE A WELL LAID OUT
SET OF PRIORITIES THAT
ALLOWS US TO KEEP IT REAL
BUT STILL MANAGE TO RACE”