Originally published at: Charles-Barclay Will Not Start IM World Championships - Slowtwitch News
Defending IRONMAN World Champion Lucy Charles-Barclay will not start tomorrow’s IRONMAN World Championships in Nice, France due to injury.
Charles-Barclay took to Instagram to announce that she suffered a muscle strain over the last week. She cited her lengthy rehabilitation time from last year’s victory in Kona, where she raced on a calf injury to victory but took months to heal from.
It is the first time a defending IRONMAN World Champion withdraws due to illness or injury pre-race since Chrissie Wellington was forced to withdraw with multiple illnesses in 2010.
You can watch live coverage of tomorrow’s IRONMAN World Championships via proseries.ironman.com (outside of the U.S.) or via Outside Watch.
Photo: Pablo Blazquez Dominguez / Getty Images for IRONMAN