Dylan Gauthier crosses the finish line after completing the Ironman 70.3 Arizona event on Oct. 22, 2023 in Tempe, Ariz.

Dylan Gauthier, 26, of St. George, Utah and 2016 graduate of Escanaba High School, completed his sixth half Ironman race in Tempe, Arizona, posting a time of 4:46:15. He placed fourth in the 25-29 age group and ranked 89 out of 816 in his gender class and placed 29th out of the 1,179 total participants.

His finish in Tempe qualified him for the World Championships to be held in Taupo, New Zealand in 2024.

“I realized at the end of 2020 that this was something that I wanted to do,” Gauthier said. The half Ironman race consists of a 1.2 mile swim a 56 mile bike race and a 13.1 mile run. “I train anywhere from 13 to 18 hours per week,” Gauthier said.

Gauthier played football, hockey and golf in high school for the Eskymos

“Playing sports definitely kept me in good shape to be able to do this,” Gauthier said. “This isn’t something that just anybody is going to go out and do. You have to dedicate yourself to this.”

Gauthier placed 26th out of 1,183 people in his race in Phoenix, Arizona on Oct. 22, which featured temperatures between 95 and100 degrees. Gauthier also competed in Chattanooga, Tennessee in May and finished 417th out of 2,800 people.

In September of 2021 he competed in Frankfort, Michigan and placed 90th out of 1,450 people. In 2021 he competed in Madison, Wisconsin and in Waco, Texas.

“I’m looking forward to the World Championships,” Gauthier said. “It’s a 13 hour plane trip but very worth it for the chance to compete at this level for a World Championship.”