Eric van der Els took the win at the Matanzas 5k this past weekend in St Augustine, FL, his first race in 13 months. To say that it has been a long road for Eric would be an understatement. Eric was happy to win the race and with the way he felt en route to his 14:23 finishing time. But the real win was that the race signified he’s healthy and back to racing.
Eric partially tore his posterior tibial tendon in December of 2022. He was forced to take a significant amount of time off to let the tendon heal. After returning to training in the spring of 2023 he had a bout of achilles tendonitis during the summer. In the fall the he struggled with on and off pain in his posterior tibial tendon.
Through it all Eric worked hard on the ElliptiGo, running in the pool, and on rehab work. As difficult as it was to miss the entire year, Eric was always putting extra time on the bike or ElliptiGo, always working working to keep his fitness elevated. Jumping back in with a win over 2 other pro athletes and running away over the final kilometer to win in 14:23 showed that his hard work has put him in a good position to start the year.
Eric’s next race will be a trip overseas to Ireland where he’ll compete in the Armagh 5k on February 8th.