Injury strikes at critical point
MIDRANDm - K-Way athlete Lucky Miya sustained an unfortunate groin injury in the 2014 Skyrunning World Championships on 29 June, just 13km before the finish line.
The race was hosted by Marathon du Mont-Blanc.
Miya was in 7th place when a groin injury slowed him to a crawl, and at the final 35km checkpoint he withdrew from the race, unable to continue.
Torrential rain and a course change marked this edition of the Marathon du Mont-Blanc.
Nonetheless, in these cold, wet and challenging conditions, Miya went through the 10km checkpoint in 13th place; 26km in 9th and 29km in 7th. But then he didn’t check in at 35km when expected.
When his split finally appeared he was down to 64th position and his race status changed to ‘stopped by the organisation’.
“I felt strong the whole way and could see that a top five was possible. I had groin pain at 26km and so I slowed down hoping that I would be able to push again; but it became worse. Moving slower in the unfriendly weather conditions my body temperature dropped as well and just moving forward was a tough mission. At the la Flégère checkpoint (35km) I was advised to stop as I was in danger of hypothermia,” said Miya.
Although Miya’s first big international trail race ended in disappointment, his competitive potential is evident. To run within spitting distance of the aggressive and experienced front group, which included the likes of Kilian Jornet, Michel Lanne and Tom Owens, is commendable.
“Team K-Way are extremely proud of him. To have climbed to 7th place before injury struck is testament to Lucky’s incredible ability and potential,” said Nick Bennett, K-Way brand manager.
Miya thanked his supporters and sponsors. He said, “I will recover and be back on my game soon.”
The men’s race was won by Jornet in 3:23:39, while Elisa Desco won the women’s race in 3:53:33.
South African Landie Greyling placed 12th in the women’s race.
