'Hurt locker' Hollioake hunts debut Cairns Ironman win

Perth Now

14-06-2025

After announcing herself as a new star of Ironman triathlon, Australian Regan Hollioake is now acutely aware of what can happen when race day goes wrong.
The 35-year-old from Ballarat is one of the leading favourites for Sunday's Ironman Cairns, which she is racing for the first time.
Hollioake will also make her debut in October at the Hawaiian Ironman world championships - triathlon's most famous race - and has come to Cairns fresh from a three-week training camp at the Kona race site.
Since turning professional last year, Hollioake has won Ironman Australia at Port Macquarie as well as the New Zealand and Malaysia Ironman races over the 3.8km swim, 180km cycle and 42.2km marathon run format.
Then, in late April, she raced Ironman Texas and, as Hollioake explains it, "I got a little wrapped up in the race".
Hollioake made the fatal mistake of not paying attention to her race nutrition and hydration, crucial for the eight-plus hours of an Ironman.
She does not remember starting the run. Her kidneys shut down and the Australian passed out 13km into the marathon.
"I woke up in the medical tent," Hollioake told AAP.
"Some really hard and tough lessons learned, but some really valuable lessons ... I paid the price.
"The lessons you learn in Ironman are big ones - there are no easy lessons."
But Hollioake recovered quickly and medical tests showed no lasting ill effects.
"It was a bit confronting ... I got away with that one," she said.
Now to Cairns, which is part of the Ironman Pro Series and boasting a top international field.
It will be a crucial stepping stone for Hollioake ahead of Kona. The training camp was her first visit to the Big Island and she immediately understood why the Hawaiian Ironman is such a big deal.
"I can see why it's really hard to get right, that race. It's such an extreme climate and the course is brutal," she said.
"But I really enjoyed it. I quite like getting in the hurt locker and just staying there."
Hollioake also is determined to return to top form with a big result in Cairns.
"I'm really, really excited for this race. I've never been in better condition in terms of physically, but also emotionally ... I'm really confident in the fact that I've done everything I can," she said.
"You definitely need to have your head in the game for the race at hand. But in the back of your mind, there's always Kona being the big goal," she said.
"We're all business for Cairns on Sunday.
"I don't know what I'm capable of, but I keep surprising myself."
New Zealander Hannah Berry will defend her title and Australian Kylie Simpson is a two-time Cairns champion, while Queensland-based Dutch star Lotte Wilms and American Jackie Hering are other prominent names.
The men's race will feature three-time winner Braden Currie from New Zealand, rising Australian star Nick Thompson and American long-distance gun Matthew Marquardt.