Mel Sauve
There are races you win, and there are races that show the sport who you are.
At Ironman 70.3 Oceanside, Sam Long delivered one of the boldest performances of his career – not because he stood on the top step of the podium, but because of how completely he committed to the possibility of it.
Make no mistake, this was not a conservative race. This was a whole-hearted, nothing-held-back effort against the strongest field Oceanside has ever seen.
This Is What It Looks Like to Go All In
Sam Long has long been an inspiration to the triathlon community for his persistence in the water. Not a swimmer by background, he has worked relentlessly to close the gap required to contend at the highest level.
And at Oceanside, that work showed.
He exited the water just 2:00 down on the front pack and immediately got to work on the bike, riding with clear intent. By kilometre 40, he had moved from 32nd out of the water into third, with commentators already calling him “the mover.”
Pre-race, in A Fighting Chance, Long had been clear: winning Oceanside would likely require record-level performances. On the bike, he delivered exactly that, riding into T2 first with a new course record of 2:02:04 – two and a half minutes faster than the previous mark set by his training partner and friend, Lionel Sanders.
It was the kind of ride that makes a statement: I’m not here to follow. I’m here to win.
He carried that same intent and courage onto the run.
With 7km to go, he was still there. Still leading. “Yo Yo Yo” echoed along the Strand as the fan favourite looked poised for a breakthrough win at one of the sport’s most iconic races.
In the closing kilometres, the lead changed hands. Kristian Blummenfelt surged from behind to take the win, with Long ultimately finishing fourth (but still under the previous course record by three minutes, on a day where nine men went under it, underscoring the depth of the most competitive field in Oceanside history).
More Than A Result
At the finish, the emotion was written across Sam Long’s face. Initial disappointment, yes – how could there not be after coming so close and giving it everything? But not long after, something else settled in. Pride, perhaps. The kind that comes from knowing you didn’t leave anything out there.
In a brief post-race exchange, I said to him, “You almost had the race of your life, taking the win!”
He paused, then answered simply: maybe he did have the race of his life anyway.
Because this wasn’t a race where Long sat in, waited, and hoped. He took it on. He absorbed a two-minute swim deficit, broke the bike course record, led deep into the run, and went head-to-head with the very best in the world – and very nearly pulled it off.
That’s what had fans lining the course, shouting “Yo Yo Yo,” feeling like they were witnessing something extraordinary.
Sam Long gave everything. And everyone watching felt it.
