By Rick Pusiak
He completed the course!
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Local OPP detective Cst. Al Kuzenko swam for two-and-a-half miles, rode a bicycle for 112 miles and ran for 26 miles at the Aug. 25 Canadian Iron Man Triathlon championship in Penticton, BC.
Kuzenko didnÂ?t quit once and finished with a time of 14 hours 46 minutes.
The Iron Man didnÂ?t place at the top but thatÂ?s not why the athlete entered the event.
The 34-year-old signed up to raise funds for the battle against cancer and pulled in over $4,000.
Kuzenko said the big mountains on the West Coast are incredible to look at and incredible to cycle around.
They were also the toughest part of the course for the competitor with one section going 11 kilometres straight up.
Â?There was not one single time when I said Â?thatÂ?s itÂ?,Â? recalled Kuzenko.
When he got tired he just thought about all the people who had sponsored him, and that kept the Iron Man going.
His family cheered Kuzenko on from the sidelines, as did a throng of people from Penticton.
By the time the competition was completed, the athlete swam one hour and 14 minutes, biked seven hours and one minute and ran five hours and 17 minutes.
And thatÂ?s without a break.
The competition started at 7 am with the blast of a cannon.
Everyone left at the same time and had until midnight to finish the course.
Some 2,100 athletes from 20 countries took part in the event.
What did Kuzenko say when he finished?
Â?Holy smoly I canÂ?t believe I did it,Â? said the officer. Â?I am an Iron Man.Â?
Even diet and fitness conscious iron men allow themselves a bit of a treat after a grueling event like the one in BC.
Kuzenko said he and his wife walked around and found a burger joint open at around 1 am.
They ordered the breakfast of champions: burgers and fries.
Kuzenko said his first goal now is to let his body recover.
HeÂ?s also looking for a new challenge but hasnÂ?t decided yet exactly what form of competition that will be.
Anyone wishing to donate to KuzenkoÂ?s cause can call
675-TIPS.
The funds will go to the Canadian Cancer Society and the local cancer research centre.
The Sudbury-born Kuzenko signed up with the OPP 12 years ago and was posted to Geraldton for 10 years.
Back in 1999 he was posted to Crime Stoppers in this city.
