Bio

Interviewed by Ironman 70.3 Lahti, Finland

”In the end - this is just a way to stay fit and take care of health”

No blood or tears, just sweat and most of the time some serious fun. Tero Setola 40, from SKB Racing and Espoo, Finland, was the fastest overall age group athlete (4.13) in last summer’s Nokian Tyres IRONMAN 70.3 Finland.

We asked Tero how he started triathlon, what’s the meaning of it in his life and what are his goals for the upcoming summer. This is how he answered:

”I started triathlon ten years ago. I was running marathons before and happened to see the IRONMAN World Championchips from Hawaii on TV. It looked so much fun that I wanted to try it myself.

My first ever triathlon race was the full distance Finnish Championchips in Nokia 2010. The race went so well that I was hooked straight away. For me, running was familiar and easy and cycling also seemed to suite me quite well. Swimming was something that I had to start from the scratch, since I didn’t have any swimming backround.

Swim technique needs constant work, but I’m eager to learn more. I’ve put some serious effort on swimming during the fall and winter. In the pool I swim faster and easier now than ever before, thanks to my mentors and training mates. Next challenge is to move speed from pool to open water with wetsuit. I do most of my swim training early in the morning. I coach myself and train 12-20 hours per week and 600 hours per year. Besides training, I have a full day job on IT business and a family. Some days need more scheduling than others, but luckily my employer and loved ones are quite flexible and understand that this sport is so much more than just a hobby.

Triathlon is a lifestyle, passion and social community where I can share my own experience and learnings of training. I’m currently mentoring team mates and colleagues at work and could possibly do coaching in the future. Triathlon has given me much more than I have gave to it. For the outsiders, the hours put on training might seem crazy, but when you talk with them and open it up, they realize that in the end, this is just a way to stay fit and take care of own health.

Last season went just the way as I planned. It was rewarding to see own improvement and achieve the goals I have chased. The win in Lahti was one of the cherries on top of the cake, 5th place in IRONMAN Italy and a ticket to Kona was the other. My biggest goal for the coming summer is obviously in October and in Hawaii. It’s going to be my second time on the Big Island and I want to succeed as good as I can in my own age group.

Nokian Tyres IRONMAN 70.3 Finland is going to be one of my main races for the summer. Last year it was a true world class event. I’ve done over 10 Ironman’s so far and I can tell that the atmosphere, routes and athlete services in Lahti were one of the best I’ve seen. 

See you all there!