In only five years, Myrianne Côté has managed to qualify four time for the 70.3 Ironman World Championships. For common mortals, it would certainly be a remarkable feat. For competitive triathletes looking to accumulate points with a view to eventually qualifying for the 70.3 World Championships, it’s an accomplishment. Myrianne Côté’s route, however, was not without its bumps. The triathlete could well never again have crossed the finish line of a competition this significant. Tremblant Express met with her.

If a smile could merit being named to the Good Mood Hall of Fame, it would be Myrianne Côté’s. Like many in our community, she launched herself into the world of triathlons shortly after the arrival of the Ironman events in 2012. During the first running of the 70.3 Ironman Mont-Tremblant, she participated in the event as a volunteer. That was all it took to transform this mother of two boys into a true triathlete. “That’s when the flame was lit,” she explains. “I wanted to live that, too.”

It’s easy today to see just how much Myrianne is in her element when you watch her evolve during a competition. Whether she’s exiting the water, on the bike ride or on the run, she wears a radiant smile. Nothing seems to shake her euphoria.

“I’ve always been very passionate and professional in my jobs, and sports were not part of my life. It was Mont-Tremblant that changed me. My first race was À toi Lola, at the Domaine Saint-Bernard. That day, my home was full of people. I left to do a 5 km and I came back having won a podium position. I didn’t even break a sweat,” she remembers laughingly.

Barely two years later, Myrianne participated in the Ironman 70.3 Championships in Mont-Tremblant. As participants collapsed one after another at the finish line, Myrianne crossed it with energy to spare, wearing the smile that was becoming a legend. She had barely got her breath back when she rushed over to hug her friends, family and all those who supported her then and who will keep supporting her for a long time: the members of her “tribe”, as she affectionately calls them.

The crash, when everything changed

On October 22, 2017, barely 10 days before participating in the 70.3 Los Cabos, in Mexico – which was supposed to qualify her for the Ironman 70.3 Championships 2018 – Myrianne took a bad fall biking on chemin du Nordet. The impact was brutal and it’s hard to believe that Myrianne didn’t break anything. She did, however, suffer a severe concussion as well as a shoulder dislocation and several deep lacerations.

A very precise re-education

Following the accident, Myrianne developed positional vertigo, the main secondary effect of her concussion. The syndrome, characterized by short episodes of vertigo triggered by sudden changes in head position, kept her from cycling and in particular, from diving or tumbling in the water.

“I applied my re-education protocol to the letter,” says Myrianne. “It paid off. Beyond strictness and specific, precise, training sessions – which were extremely carefully rationed – the technique paid off.”

“I had to start again from zero” she continues. “I lost what I’d gained. I didn’t swim anymore and I didn’t cycle the same way. I had to adapt. My reading of the terrain and my position changed. On the other hand, it gives me a better understanding of the athletes I coach. It’s one more piece of knowledge,” she concedes.

Turning the page

This athlete is fueled by challenge. On January 31, Myrianne registered for the Ironman in St. George, Utah. It was held on May 5 of this year.

“I anticipated a time of 5 h 19 min, which would position me well. But I didn’t know what kind of shape I’d be in when I exited the water. I was open to any eventuality. I finished in 5 h 15 min, within 24 seconds of the first person in my age category, which got me my ticket for the 70.3 World Championships in South Africa on September 1,” she notes, wearing that stunning smile.

“It was a winning recipe. I had toughness and discipline, but without passion I might have faced the situation with more bitterness,” Myrianne admits. “I’m a little more flexible than before the accident; I give myself a bit more love. I was extremely rigid with myself and now I have added some gentleness. And it worked,” she concludes.