Jennifer Goes to Kona

In early October, a local area woman will be embarking on a trip to Hawaii. She’ll be taking this journey to fulfill a dream she has had for several years - a dream she has worked extremely hard to fulfill over those years. This October, she, along with her husband and daughter, will fly to the big island of Hawaii to participate in the 2025 Women’s World Championship Ironman Competition in Kona, Hawaii. 

I met Jennifer Cameron (Bristow) when we ran a story about her participation in the Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon in 2019. Since then, she has successfully competed in a total of 13 Iron Man Triathlons, thus allowing her to be registered as a “legacy” for the upcoming 2025 World Championship. The men's race in Nice, France, will be held on September 14, 2025, while the women's race in Kona will be held on October 14, 2025. 

Cameron grew up in California, moving to Wisconsin before transferring to the Tampa area, where she began her fitness career working for a local YMCA. 

She relocated to the Naples area and spent 15 years here as the Fitness and Wellness Director at Fiddlers Creek, where she was extremely well-liked and respected.  

She became involved more heavily in the sport of running and eventually the competitive Triathlon field, which includes a swimming, biking, and running component. She laughingly comments that it was where she met her husband Richard, who encouraged her competitive nature to try it, and she was hooked. 

The Kona World Championship will begin with a two and a half mile open ocean swim across Kailua-Kona Bay with its swells and chops. Competitors will then hop on their bikes and take on a grueling 112-milebike course with strong, gusty winds, which can be very unpredictable at times. The last segment of the event will involve a full 26.2-mile marathon where extreme heat radiating off lava fields will drain contestants due to a lack of shade and high humidity. 

The drain on the athletes’ physical condition is compounded by the strain on their mental condition as the race will take a toll on athletes throughout the course. 

Cameron has been taking this challenge seriously and has utilized trainer Karen Tamson, a local Naples resident and veteran Triathlete who has been coaching Cameron on her run-up to the Kona event. “Karen has been extremely helpful in not only providing me great insight into what this will take physically but also mentally,” said Cameron. 

She smiles when talking about the support that her daughter and her husband Richard have provided to her. “They’ve both been wonderful, they truly are my rocks, providing me with the emotional support and encouragement needed in the run-up to October,” she said.  

Approximately 2,000 women and another 6,000 spectators will be on hand to cheer on their family and friends who will be entered in the event. Meanwhile, Cameron is working and training hard in preparation for her big day on the big island.