Zdeno Chara is continuing his career as an endurance athlete after retirement, completing his first Ironman in Kalmar, Sweden last week. After swimming 3.8 kilometers and cycling 180 kilometers, 47-year-old Chara ran a full marathon and finished the race with a time of 10:40:48.
The legendary Boston Bruin and former Capital has dedicated himself fully to running since retiring in the fall of 2022, completing eight marathons in less than two years. Although he has also completed triathlons in the past, the race in Kalmar was his first full Ironman competition.
“It was absolutely fantastic,” Chara said afterwards. “The fans, the people of Kalmar and the Swedes are so incredible. I owe the whole race to them. I couldn’t believe how many signs and posters and music and cheering there were and it was just spectacular. So thank you Kalmar and thank you to all the fans who came to support us during the race.”
Chara trained for just three months for his debut at the 2023 Boston Marathon, where he posted a time of 3:38:24. Since then, he has only stepped up the pace, posting a personal best of 3:10:24 at the Houston Marathon in January. After more than six hours of swimming and cycling in Kalmar, Chara completed the Ironman run course in just 3:48:54. He finished the entire race with an overall ranking of 409, placing 60th in his division.
Before the race, Chara told Barometer that participating in triathlons was a natural transition after retiring from the NHL.
“I always enjoyed the long-distance training for the hockey season, so I wanted to stay in shape and be active after my career,” he said. “And so cycling and running became a daily routine. I also added swimming, so why not? I still have to do something, be active. It’s a lot of fun: you meet a lot of great people and learn a lot.”
Now Chara has his sights set on Kona, Hawaii, where he will compete in the 2024 Ironman World Championship on October 26.
