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From DH skier to top IRONMAN Triathlete

Get to know Trevor Wurtele

Triathlon Magazine Canada Trevor Wurtele wins Subaru Ironman Canada

Ahead of IRONMAN Canada, we got to chat with Trevor Wurtele about the upcoming weekend, as well as get to know the 2013 IRONMAN Canada champion.

Triathlon Magazine Canada Trevor Wurtele wins Subaru Ironman Canada
Trevor Wurtele wins Subaru Ironman Canada in Aug., 2013.

Wurtele, like most Canadian kids, got his start in sports at a young age. As he grew up, he became fond of downhill skiing and pursed that for much of his adolescence and early adulthood. As part of cross training Wurtele did a fair bit of cycling to stay fit, so when he called it quits with skiing, he continued to cycle with friends to stay active.

In 2003 he missed the competition, always a competitor Wurtele was looking for a challenge. That year he watched Peter Reid win the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, and knew that was what he wanted to do. Naturally, he registered for IRONMAN Canada for 2004.

From then on, his drive to improve took over. Year after year he got a bit better, got higher placings until he and his wife, Heather Wurtele, quit their day job and became full-time professional athletes in 2009.

The two, Heather and Trevor, have an interesting relationship from an outside perspective. The two are both high-end triathletes, they train together, often racing at the same races, and balance life as a married couple. Trevor says he wouldn’t have it any other way, “It just works so well for us, I really wouldn’t have it any other way… we are step-by-step in sync.”

Heather and Trevor Wurtele. Photo: davidmccolm.com

So far this season, Wurtele has done a number of half distance triathlons in America and Europe. This weekend he be racing at IRONMAN Canada, a race he set out to be his focus in the winter. Having been able to build throughout the season, he is coming in with what he says to be great fitness, “I am certainly fit and ready to give Marino and Brent my best and aim for a top three placing.”

Trevor and the thousands of IRONMAN and IRONMAN 70.3 triathletes will be competing in Whistler on Sunday, July 29th.