Maarten van der Weijden has been working on his eleven-city triathlon for almost a week now. The intention was that he would be ready on Saturday afternoon, but he will not make it. “He will now first have to grab a moment of sleep in Dokkum,” says his spokesperson.
The Olympic champion, who lives in Vught, was supposed to arrive in Leeuwarden on Saturday, but he is too tired to finish the journey. According to the spokesman, it is not yet possible to say when he will finish. “That depends on the sleep he gets. It may be Sunday morning, but whether it will be early or late morning, I dare not say.”
The triathlon
The journey that Van der Weijden is working on consists of 200 kilometers of swimming, 200 kilometers of cycling and 200 kilometers of walking, with as little sleep and rest in between as possible. With the Eleven Cities triathlon, the swimmer raises money for cancer research. The counter is currently at 1.3 million euros.
It is not the first time that the champion has committed himself to this cause. In 2018, Van der Weijden had to give up early when he held an eleven-city swimming tour. The following year he swam it out in 75 hours. In 2021 he even ventured into two actions. A home triathlon, in and around his own home. And he raised 80,000 euros with a four-day swimming trip.
Maarten van der Weijden’s triathlon can be followed live here: