She is not aiming at top places but Carey who finished last year’s shortened course in 8:22:35 said in an interview yesterday that completing the 3 kilometer swim, 1.45 kilometer bike and 42.195 kilometer run in 11 hours would be quite enough to call it a victory.
Carey who did not join last year’s swim course said she can not compare this year’s triathlon with last year’s event which was cut short by a typhoon. So from her first taste of Japan’s most challenging sports event, she has gained a sense of calculation how long she can finish all the three courses.
“I will swim this time and my confidence is good. I am ready to go,” Carey said hoping that the weather on Sunday will be fine.
Carey who vowed last year to be back and conquer the regular three-km swim, 145-km bike and 42.195-km run triathlon is competing alone this time. Her husband, Kevin who finished the race in 8:47:34 is saving his energy for the Xterra Championship that will be held in Marunuma, Japan on Aug. 29.
They have been practicing together in the past few weeks.
Carey will be accompanied by Pacific Development, Inc. general manager, Yoichi Matsumura and Marianas Visitors Authority’s Frank Tudela tomorrow.
Last year Matsumura was pleased with the performance of the Kevin and Mieko Carey tandem so he is confident to see that Mieko will make it again this time.
Mieko finished 486th out of 750 after negotiating the shortened 3-km run, 74-km bike, and marathon in 8:22:35.
She gave a good account of herself in the run portion of the duathlon as she finished 29th among the women. She also did well in the bike split as she ranked 23rd among the women.
Kevin came in at 578th place following a time of 8:47:34. He finished 375th in the run and 421st in the bike split.
Kunihiko Miki topped the duathlon in a time of 5:38:33, while Harumi Matsumoto was the first woman to cross the finish line in 6:11:51.
Out of the 750 who signed up for the typhoon-shortened race, only 733 were able to finish. The last one came in at 11:51:31.
“The Kaike Triathlon was a very difficult race. The course was changed due to a typhoon as the swim portion was cancelled for the first time in the 27-year history of the race. The strong wind and rain made the race very challenging. It would have been an easier the race if not for the typhoon. Fortunately, they made some last-minute changes so that the race could go on,” Mieko and Kevin were quoted as saying after last year’s event.
They added that if not for the “incredible support team and the 3,000 volunteers, they might not have been able to finish the race. “The Kaike Triathlon organizers also did an amazing job!” the couple said.
Careys wants to extend her appreciation to Matsumura for making her trip possible once again. She also thanks the MVA and the Kaike Triathlon organizers for showing CNMI around.
The Kaike Triathlon is the first triathlon held in Japan and began with 52 racers 26 years ago. Over time, the course has expanded to a three-km swim, 145-km bike and 42.195-km run and entries swelled to nearly 900 the past couple of years.
