'There was no way I was stopping' - Neil crawls to Ironman glory

The retired detective superintendent won the gruelling triathlon event in the men's over 65s category in Nice after completing the 3.8m swim, 189km ride and 42km run in a time of 11hrs 26mins 25secs.

Hunter revealed he nearly collapsed with exhaustion and had to crawl over the line - which brought up memories of when Jonny Brownlee had to be helped over the line by his fellow Olympian brother Alistair in a triathlon event in Mexico nine years ago.

"I had a proper Brownlee moment," recalls Hunter. "I was so exhausted, I lost all co-ordination and fell over numerous times and had to, literally, crawl over the finishing line.

"If the world championship hadn’t been on the line, I would’ve definitely stopped.

"In fact, several officials, who came to my assistance, as I continually fell over kept asking me if I wanted to stop. There was no way I was stopping."

Hunter admitted is was a dream come true to win the ultimate endurance race - qualifying for the world championships after winning his category at Ironman Portugal in October 2024.

"I’m not sure it has entirely sunk in yet," he said of the victory. "Whoever says dreams don’t come true are talking rubbish; mine did at the Nice IM world championship."

Recapping each discipline, Hunter said the swim was not for the faint hearted after getting bashed up by fellow competitors, was delighted with his incident free bike ride before admitting 'the wheels came off' in the run section.

"It was a non-wetsuit swim as the sea water temperature was 25.5 degrees," he said.

"So, not being a strong swimmer, I was delighted with my time of 78 mins for a 3.8km open, deep water start sea swim.

"The water was relatively calm with quite a bit of swell but not too rough. However, who ever decided to send the younger, better swimmers’ wave out immediately after the over 60’s need their heads testing.

The better swimmers quickly caught us up. I have never been beaten up so much in the water. They aggressively swam over you, through you, kicking, slapping, pulling, punching and pushing you out of their way; it was brutal and not for the faint hearted.

"I eventually made it through T1 unscathed then it was onto the bike."

While the 180km bike course included 2500m of climbing, Hunter was delighted with his time of 6hrs 9mins.

He added: "I worked relatively hard on the climbs, which were long and attritional. Living on the doorstep of the Ribble Valley and practicing riding through the Trough of Bowland definitely helped my preparation.

"And, I took full advantage of the free speed the descents provided, which were exciting, fast and scary as…

"It was difficult to take in all the magnificent scenery of the Alps because I had to concentrate all the time due to speed I was travelling, particularly on the very technical descents; what a sensational bike course; it was exhilarating."

"I pushed really hard on the first half of the marathon and was on target for a 3:20-3.25 finishing time. I did the first two laps (21km) of the run course in 1:35.

"I was unaware exactly where my nearest competitor was and so continued to push really hard on the run into the third and fourth laps.

"Everything was going well until the second half of the final lap of the four lap run as I turned into the wind for the last time.

"It was close to 30 degrees and I foolishly went into the red, this is when the wheel well and truly came off.

"Perhaps, I pushed a little too hard at the beginning of the run and over-cooked myself; who knows.

"I am still not sure how I made it to the finishing line."

Hunter admitted it must have been a tough watch for friends and family but thanked the triathlon community for helping him get through it.

"I must give a big shout out to the other competitors who, having seen my distress, also checked on my welfare; the triathlon community are a special group of people," he said.

"Watching family and supporters had made me aware I was leading my age group, so there was no way I was going to stop. Having (his wife) Allison and friends with me made the whole experience that extra bit special.

"During this difficult period, all I could think of is I may never have this opportunity to lead and/or win a world championship again. So, I gritted my teeth and somehow through resilience, determination and bloody mindedness, I got it done.

"Despite the distressing scenes at the end, which was a worry for family and friends, I quickly recovered, especially after gorging on the post-race banquet. It soon had me back to my normal self.

"In fact, after I had collected my bike and bags from transition, we returned to our apartment for a well earned shower. We then went out into the night and I couldn’t resist a celebratory bottle of wine at a beautiful roof top bar overlooking the Mediterranean; life just doesn’t get any better."

While it a a personal moment of triumph for Hunter he said he could not have done it without those who have supported him all the way.

He said: "This has been a tremendous team effort, so I could not have done it without the help of a number of people including my triathlon coach, Nick Thomas from The Endurance Store, believe in the process, it got me in great shape; my physio, Duncan Mason from Athlete Matters who has kept an ageing body in tip top condition; my swim coach, Sue McTique who has improved my swimming immeasurable and my bike mechanic, Mick Forty who has expertly serviced and made my bike run like a dream.

"Last but by no means least, a huge thank you to my wife Allison who had had to put up with me as we have travelled along this incredible journey together. She has unselfishly allowed me to indulge my passion for triathlon.

"This achievement is as much for her as it is for me."