Tim Hola was first exposed to athletics like any other kid. His parents signed him up for a host of sports, including baseball, basketball and golf. When Hola was a mere seven years old he joined the local swim team at the YMCA in Fort Dodge, Iowa. Hola swam the duration of his high school career, qualifying for state honors all four years.
Upon graduating high school in 1993, Hola set his sights on swimming at the University of Iowa. After he could not make the team, Hola scoped out other sports. -- One that peaked his interest was rowing. For the next three years, Hola rowed for Iowa and became its team captain in his senior year. He soon learned to enjoy his long training runs with the team and completed his first marathon in 1994. -- Hola ran the Twin Cities Marathon in Minneapolis, MN in 3 hours 35 minutes. The following year, his dad, Ken, who actively races triathlons, saw his son's talent and encouraged him to race the Big Creek Triathlon in Iowa. Hola borrowed his dad's bike and completed the race, finishing sixth in his age group. This was the beginning of a phenomenon.
Hola’s athletic successes include: 12-time Ford Ironman World Championship finisher (1999-2010) … 10th overall at Ironman Florida (2009) -- AG course record … two-time USAT Long Course National Champion (2005, 2009) … Strongman Japan -- 5th overall (2008) … overall amateur champion at Ironman Buffalo Springs Lake 70.3, Ironman Kansas 70.3, Ironman California 70.3, Timberman 70.3, Wildflower Long Course, 5430 Long Course … Boulder Triathlon Series Champion (2006) … USAT Rocky Mountain Regional Champion (2005) … inductee into Timex Multisport Team Hall of Fame (2011)… named “Fittest Real Man in America” by Outside Magazine (September 2008) … seven-year member of the Timex Multisport Team … Rocky Mountain Sports Magazine: one of Colorado’s “Everyday Heroes” (2008) … USAT Male Athlete of the Year: Honorable Mention (2006) … Triathlete Magazine Amateur Athlete of the Year (2005).
"When I look back at what I have done in the sport, I’m proud of the discipline and dedication I put into it," Hola told StrengthUSA.com. "Consistency is another secret. But if you find a routine that works for you and you stick with it, you’ll find over time that it will all pay off in the end.”
Hola, 36, is a father of twin four year-old boys and works as a sales representative for his sponsor, PowerBar. His wife, Nikki, is an avid athlete and also races in triathlons.
“Tim is an all-around great athlete and person,” said close friend and owner of Colorado Springs Swim School, Kevin Dessart. "He shows uncommon dedication, and his athletic ability is only dwarfed by his compassion as a person. Tim knows how to keep everything in perspective as an athlete, father, husband and friend. It’s this balance that helps make him the athlete he is.”
This year, Ken, 67, and Tim will race Ironman 70.3 in Texas, hoping to qualify together for October’s Ford Ironman World Championship in Kailua-Kona, Hawaii.
“I still feel I have a long way to go before I am done,“ Hola said, “but in the last 16 years, the sport has given me many gifts that I am truly thankful for.”
