A late bachelor party in Scandinavia - Michi will race IRONMAN Kalmar before the honeymoon in Kona

He is under zero pressure this time, as his Kona slot has already been in the bag since IRONMAN Lake Placid. Sweden is an optimal preparation for Kona with strong competition lining up. Amongst others, the local heroes Svenningsson, Jesper Svensson, Patrick Nilsson as well as Antony Costes, Pieter Heemeryck and Alistair Brownlee will fight it out for the last Kona slots.

Michi has always wanted to do this race in Scandinavia. The flat pusher bike course, where strong winds are possible, suits him well. From the mainland it leads out to the island of Öland. The course is very cool, but also very different from his last races. The 700 meters of altitude result primarily from bridge crossings, including the Öland Bridge with a length of 6km.

The winding swim course of just one round is expected to take place with wetsuits allowed. The running route could prove to be narrow and difficult with the age groupers involved and there are also some cobblestone passages to be reckoned with. Every race is a good training stimulus for Michi. Especially the marathon run under competitive conditions gives an extra motivational boost.

Last Saturday, the Gumpoldskirchen native said “yes” to his Chrissi in her hometown. The preparations and the wedding itself were surely the toughest and most emotional event of the last few weeks, but also beautiful!

Michi will travel north with his mental coach Wolfgang Seidl who also recently accompanied him to the USA. He wants to deliver a strong race in Sweden, independent of the result, but the trip should pay off in terms of Hawaii preparation.

Key Facts: Race start is at 06:55 a.m. on Saturday, August 20th. It's a men's professional only race. Weather forecast: 14-24 degrees with a high probability of rain - iväg till Sverige!