Rutger Beke, one of Kona’s most consistent performers this decade, withdrew from the 2009 Ironman Triathlon World Championship due to a gash in his left foot suffered during the bike leg of the Olympic distance Knokke Triathlon in Belgium September 2.
While attempting to insert his left foot into a cycling shoe attached to his pedal, Beke’s foot slipped off the top of the shoe and into his front wheel. According to a release by Beke’s publicist, the spokes of the wheel cut a 4-inch gash in the foot that cut away skin down to the tendons, bone and muscle.
“This has been my worst season as a professional so far,” Beke said in the release. “I can’t believe the string of bad luck I am having.”
Early in 2009, Beke contracted a virus from his young daughters, and turned in off-form performances at California 70.3 and Wildflower. Fully recovered by mid-summer, Beke engaged in altitude training at his favorite mountain resort in France and felt confident he was on track for another top Kona finish.
“My training was incredible and I was feeling more fit than I did last year at this time so I knew I would have another good race at Kona,” Beke stated. “I am so incredibly disappointed and frustrated not just for myself but also for my sponsors.”
Beke’s Kona record began with a 2nd place finish to Peter Reid in 2003, followed by a 5th in 2004, 4th in 2005, 4th in 2006, and 3rd in 2008. Including 2007, when he blew up and walked the last 12 miles, Beke finished Ironman Hawaii 7 straight times.
Beke’s unfortunate accident occurred with some irony at the same Knokke Triathlon where he had a false positive test for EPO in 2004. After an eight-month ban, Beke was cleared when he and a team of scientists argued successfully that his body naturally produced waste proteins under the stress of competition and subsequent dehydration which resembled synthetic EPO when viewed by the scanning electron microscope.
Beke said he expected to make a full recovery in time to compete at Ironman Western Australia in December. “Everything happens for a reason,” he said. “I firmly believe that what does not kill you makes you stronger.”
