He finished third in the 25-29 age group and eighth overall at Ironman 70.3 Weymouth, posting 4hrs 20min. 45sec. on a course with a relatively hilly bike but fast, flat run.
Fresh from dominating Guernsey’s own Granite 100 a week earlier, he had gone in targeting a podium finish in his age group but not knowing quite who would turn up.
Woodhead covered the 1.2-mile swim in 27-46, good for second in his age group but 14th overall.
He then battled through the 56-mile cycle, gaining a few overall positions despite the challenge of the hills scattered throughout the Dorset countryside course.
That left him in a strong position for the half marathon run, where he exceeded expectations with a 1-17-35 split.
He came home within 8min. of winner Harry Lamb in a huge field featuring 1,708 finishers.
‘The race went exactly how I’d hoped it would, if not better,’ he said.
‘The swim went better than I expected, having swum a PB for that distance, which set me up perfectly for the 90k ride.
‘The route was hilly, which slowed the cycle down but I made up the time in the half marathon, where I completely shocked myself and ran a couple minutes faster than I planned to do.
‘Finishing on the podium in an Ironman event is something I never thought I’d do.
‘So to come away with both a podium finish and a World Champs slot is really special and means a lot. I’m absolutely over the moon.’
He will be heading out to Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the ‘Worlds’ next August.
Also in Weymouth, Enya Rabey completed an inspirational journey from a coma to a competitive 70.3 finish.
Still only in her second year of triathlon and still facing the effects of a rare health condition, which leaves her having to fuel via a feeding tube, she finished 41st woman and 456th overall in 5-43-18.
Rabey goes again at Ironman Portugal next month.
