January 30, 2013 at 5:54 p.m.
Overseas ironman in for triathlon
But they could face an unexpected challenge from Swiss dark horse Richard DeBrot, who is flying in on the eve of the competition to challenge Bermuda's best.
The ironman, is visi ting the island as the guest of ZBM sports presenter Nick Jones, and will practically come straight off the plane and into the race.
He's using Bermuda as his training base for a Florida ironman and will also be promoting his cycling travel tours while he is on the island.
He admits he will be 'racing blind' and says his body is better built for longer distances but he still hopes to be competitive on Sunday.
And his track record is not too shabby.
DeBrot is the managing director of EuroCycler and takes tour parties along the route of the Tour De France every year.
He's tackled some of the toughest climbs in the French Alps as well as an ironman triathlon in Brazil and other races across Europe.
He also runs coaching camps in Spain for amateur cyclists.
DeBrot, also a world-class skier who runs similar skiing holidays, said he was not coming to Bermuda to beat up on the competition but just to have fun and help promote the event.
The ironman event he is training for involves a 2.4mile swim, 112 mile cycle, and a 26.1mile run which takes upwards of ten hours to complete.
Sunday's Bank of Bermuda event is a sprint triathlon - half-mile swim, 12mile cycle, 3mile run - and requires a more explosive kind of athletic ability.
"My body is much more of a long distance body. It takes me about two hours to warm up and then I just keep going.
"I have no idea what to expect. Normally you would take a look at the course first, but this time, I'm coming in blind.
"I'm not necessarily coming in to beat the competition just to have fun and to help the athletic community."[[In-content Ad]]
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