UNLEASH YOUR INNER CHAMPION

Your Journey. Your Triumph. Your Life.

IM TRI Transforms the lives of individuals in our communities by removing participation barriers for the IRONMAN 70.3 Washington Tri-Cities.

Everyone has the potential to be a champion – no matter where they start.

IM TRI offers a pathway to health, wellness, and personal achievement. We are committed to fostering participation from athletes of all backgrounds – regardless of race, gender, physical or mental ability, or socioeconomic status. Together, we create a thriving community and fuel transformational growth.

Meet the 2026 IM TRI Athletes

Jaime Vera

Jaime Vera never pictured himself waiting on the start line of an IRONMAN 70.3. For years, his days were defined by what his body wouldn’t let him do. A herniated disc led to back surgery, degenerative disc disease made ordinary movement uncertain, and the unpredictable challenges of an autoimmune condition made training for an endurance race feel worlds away.

"For a long time, my life was measured in pain thresholds and appointments," Jaime shares. "I grew tired of that, and I decided to make a change. At first, that change wasn’t my body - it was my mindset. It was the profound declaration that my story wouldn’t be written by my diagnoses."

Jaime began small - with careful walks, gentle mobility, and intentional movement. Many of those early steps unfolded outdoors in the wide-open spaces of Tri-Cities, where he was able to rebuild at his own pace. Progress didn’t arrive in miles, but in inches, teaching him that consistency mattered more than speed. Setbacks and flare-ups required adjustment, but they also strengthened the patience and discipline that would carry him forward.

"Crossing that finish line would show me - and anyone who’s watched me navigate pain and uncertainty - that my story didn’t end with limitation," he says. "It grew with possibility through continued patience, adaptation, and a stubborn hope that I am, and always will be, more than the sum of my diagnoses or scars."

For Jaime, IRONMAN 70.3 represents more than a race - it represents a legacy of hope and endurance, one he wants to share. "I want my kids to see that no diagnosis has the final say in what your life can look like," he says. "And I’m ready to prove it."

Mariel Gentges

For Mariel Gentges, the path to IRONMAN 70.3 Washington Tri-Cities is more than a race—it’s a testament to resilience shaped through years of uncertainty. After living with unexplained symptoms, she was diagnosed in 2020 with hereditary angioedema, a rare disease affecting just 1 in 50,000 people.

“For a long time, I lived between fear and confusion,” Mariel says. “I looked healthy on the outside, but inside I was constantly bracing for what my body might do next.”

Her experience revealed something deeper: not all struggles are visible—but neither is strength. “Strength lives in quiet resilience,” she explains. “It’s in showing up through uncertainty and choosing to move forward, even when fear is present.”

That perspective is something she sees reflected in the IRONMAN 70.3 community. “Every athlete has a story,” she says. “Some trained through illness, grief, or loss. You don’t always hear those stories—but you feel them at the finish line.”

After losing her father last year, Mariel’s purpose became even more personal. Crossing the finish line now represents more than achievement—it represents healing, advocacy, and proof that resilience can rise alongside grief, illness, and unseen battles.

“I want anyone carrying something heavy to know that healing is possible,” she says. “Even when life feels overwhelming, you’re not alone. There is still hope—and there is still so much life ahead.”