She had dreamed about it for months, maybe even years, and she had trained hard for it for months. Every competition—whether it was the Special Olympics Netherlands National Games in Breda and Tilburg or a triathlon in Deil—was all about that one day: 1 September, 2024 in Duisburg, Germany. There, EsmeeAnne de Meulmeester would become the first Special Olympics athlete from Europe to complete a half IRONMAN. The dream has come true. "It's been a rollercoaster. Such an incredibly cool experience," says 25-year-old EsmeeAnne, still with a bit of disbelief in her voice.
Because she was convinced that she would be able to do it. It was one of her motivations to show that people with a disability can do a half IRONMAN: swimming 1.9 kilometers, cycling 88 kilometers and running a half marathon (21.1 kilometers). “Three events in a row, you can't do that, they say. I'm very happy that I have shown that it is possible and I hope that people now see that through my performance and stop saying things like that.”
Shaking hands
But she sometimes still doesn't believe that she actually did it.
On the big day itself, she stands in the starting box to dive into the water to begin her ordeal. EsmeeAnne chats with other participants. “I have no idea what we talked about, but we talked the tension out a bit. My hands were really shaking, my emotions were all over the place. I already had my goggles on, but that wasn't very helpful, because all the tears came. I realized that I was about to make my dream come true.”
Two days earlier, EsmeeAnne had carefully created her own bubble. Her preparation included, for example, turning off her phone. “I had told the most important people that it was nothing personal, but that my phone would be turned off until after the competition. I wanted to shield myself from the outside world. My coach (Marcel Gierman) said that that was not strange at all, very sensible in fact. Femke Bol does that too.”
Pulled by the legs
The concentration, the good physical condition and all of the training ensured that the 70.3 IRONMAN in Duisburg actually went well for EsmeeAnne from start to finish.
She also gained some new experiences. “It was very busy during the swimming. We had a rolling start, in which a small group jumped into the water each time, but we swam with a lot of people to the first buoy. Well, that was a squeeze! Legs were pulled and once I was lying on someone's back, I didn't notice that at all.” After 35 minutes, EsmeeAnne came out of the water, five minutes faster than her target.
Even her least favourite part, cycling, went going well. In the first seventy kilometres she cycles at an average of 33 km/h. After that she starts to struggle. “Of course I sit hunched over on my bike the whole time, so my back started to hurt. When I got over that, a few hills appeared and it became difficult.” EsmeeAnne calls for help from above. “My grandfather passed away last May. This was a big competition without him. And my other grandparents were always very sporty and super proud of me. Then I said out loud: ‘Grandpa and grandma, if you can hear me, please help me to the finish, because I can’t do this alone.’ I noticed that I could go a bit faster and thought: ‘Okay, we’re going to fix this.’” After 2 hours and 52 (under the 3 hours she had set for herself), EsmeeAnne gets off her bike to start the last part: 21.1 km of running.
Don’t give up
“That became a battle with myself. I know I trained for it, but never all these distances in a row. I kept repeating: ‘We’re not going to give up’ and after I met a training buddy who told me to pace myself a bit more, I didn’t always pay attention to the time. I tried to enjoy myself and just wanted to finish.” She then runs in a group of five, all of whom are on their last breath. Together they reach the finish line. ‘Ok guys, let’s do this’, one of them shouts, after which EsmeeAnne gives it her all one more time in the last few metres.
After 5 hours 26 minutes and 49 seconds (her target time was 5 hours and 40 minutes) the first Special Olympics athlete from Europe to complete a half IRONMAN crosses the finish line. And collapses. “After I had picked up my medal, my body had had enough.” A can of cola provides recovery and realization. “That’s when it all came out. I had to cry so hard. I didn't understand what I had done and how I had done it." Her achievement dawned on her, especially when she was called to the podium a little later. "It was announced that a woman was participating who was the first Special Olympics athlete from Europe to complete a 70.3 IRONMAN. I thought: 'Hey, that sounds familiar'."
