Skip to content
Join our Newsletter

Whistler triathlete Marla Zucht second at XTERRA Worlds

Local wraps up podium-filled season with off-road race in Italy earlier this month

After years spent conquering roads—and records—around the world, Whistler triathlete Marla Zucht wrapped up her race season on the trails this year.

The veteran endurance athlete is back home after claiming a podium spot at the XTERRA World Championships off-road triathlon in Molveno, Italy on Oct. 1. She crossed the finish line in four hours, 24 minutes and 36 seconds (4:24:36) to finish second in the women’s age 50-54 age group.

“I was thinking OK, maybe I’ll do top 10 in Europe, so when I found out I was second … I was very happy with it,” she said. “I really enjoyed the whole event.”

It was Zucht’s first time racing in Europe, and only her second-ever XTERRA race. She signed up to participate in what was previously a locally-organized event dubbed the Whistler X Triathlon, held in June and re-branded this year as an XTERRA event. Zucht finished first in her age division in Whistler to qualify for the championships.

“I just went into [the championships] purely thinking this is going to be a new, fun experience,” she said. “I took it seriously, but nevertheless, I had no expectations because I hadn’t really had the opportunity to compete at that level before, with international-calibre athletes in that sort of event.”

As it turned out, conditions in Italy served up an unexpected home-field advantage for Zucht—as well as for fellow Whistlerites Angela Shoniker and Mike Meade, who also competed in the championships—thanks to some pre-race precipitation.

“The course and the terrain were so muddy, it was actually, like, heinous conditions for the bike ride and the run … you just had to laugh at it,” Zucht said.

But coming from Whistler, her mountain bike skills—and even her bike itself—were perhaps more accustomed to the rough, challenging course, Zucht explained. “I showed up with a big, kind of beefy, enduro-style mountain bike, where most of the Europeans racing had really light, hardtail bikes, so it worked out, I guess, because of the conditions being so muddy and not favourable for a light race bike—it kind of played in our favour.”

After taking place in Hawaii for the last 25 years, 2022 marked the first time the 1.5-kilometre swim, 32-km mountain bike ride and 10-km trail run XTERRA World Championships were held in the northern Italian province of Trentino.

The off-road World Championships podium was an ideal end to a banner season for Zucht, even if the racecourse was slightly shorter than she’s used to. After a two-year hiatus from competition courtesy of the COVID-19 pandemic, Zucht’s season began in Utah this spring with her fifth appearance at an Ironman World Championships.

Zucht was the top Canadian finisher in the 226-km race, finishing 11th in her age category with her time of 12:20:04.

“When I started my racing this year in May, comically I had been skiing the weekend before, here in Whistler… then going to Utah to race in the World Championships Ironman, into, like, 35 degrees, so that was a tough race for me for sure,” she said. “But when I look back at the season, I’m happy.”

As she should be. Zucht followed up that accomplishment by winning her age group in the 2022 Ultraman Canada race in July, crushing the three-day, 550-km event in 26:35:47. Her time was quick enough to beat the previous record in Zucht’s 50-59 age category by two-and-a-half hours and earn her fourth-place overall.

Finally, she headed to the Ironman Canada event in Penticton in August, where she once again finished first in her 50-54 age division with a speedy time of 11:15:04, finishing 16th overall among women and punching herself a ticket to next year’s Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. “It’s such a nice peace of mind now for me to know that I’ve already qualified and I’ve got that goal set for October, and I don’t need to be thinking about, ‘am I going to be able to qualify at another race next year?’” said Zucht.

She added, “We’re so fortunate here to live in such an amazing place that’s filled with great opportunities for recreating and training, with so many strong and dedicated local athletes. I know we all get inspiration from one another and push each other to test our abilities, so we’re continuing to grow and develop our capabilities.

“There’s a great, great group of supportive triathletes here that are part of the Whistler Triathlon Club, and coupled with all of the strong local riders and runners and swimmers, there’s just no shortage of opportunities to find camaraderie and compassion.”