Matt Poole claims fighting ironman series victory over Eckstein

ECSTATIC ironman series winner Matt Poole says he has scaled his sporting Everest by finally achieving his goal of claiming the Nutri-Grain crown.

Matt Poole crosses the line to win the Nutri-Grain Ironman series in front of runner up Shannon Eckstein at North Cronulla Beach. Picture: Gregg Porteous

ECSTATIC ironman series winner Matt Poole says he has scaled his sporting Everest by finally achieving his goal of claiming the Nutri-Grain crown.

Poole beat nine-time series champion and the man widely acknowledged as the sport’s greatest of all time, Shannon Eckstein, in an eliminator final match-race to claim his first ironman crown a year after his hopes were cruelly shattered.

Locked together on top of the series ladder heading into yesterday’s final eliminator round at North Cronulla, both Poole and Eckstein survived the opening two culls to set up a thrilling head-to-head duel for the title.

Poole won the race, beating Eckstein in a sprint up the beach and could hardly contain his emotion after a decade-long chase for the crown.

“I’ve had such a funny career – injuries, brain explosions, bad luck, I’ve made highlight reels, done the pink hair, punched surf skis, I’ve done it all – but there’s no doubt about it, winning a series tops everything for me,’’ Poole said.

“You can’t describe this feeling, this is 10 years of emotion building up to this point.

“I can’t tell you how many times I’ve envisioned in my head what it would be like to cross the finish line and win my own series.

“For me, this is my Super Bowl, this is my Wimbledon, this is my grand final, this is the world for me.’’

Shannon Eckstein and Matt Poole during the Nutri-Grain Ironman race at North Cronulla Beach. Picture: Gregg Porteous

And to be able to beat Eckstein in the such a tight race made it all the more sweet.

“For me it was perfect, all I wanted was to win that final race,’’ Poole said.

“You’d love to go into the final (race) with a couple of buffer points up your sleeve but to be locked in the pointscore and going into an eliminator format with Shannon, I don’t think he’s lost one in the last five years.

“I had to take a step back and say, ‘he’s in his element here and I’ve had a great season, so whatever happens, happens.

“I was just trying to unload some of that pressure from myself and get through today.’’

Matt Poole and Harriet Brown show off their silverware after winning the 2017 Nutri-Grain Ironman and Ironwoman series at North Cronulla Beach. Picture: Gregg Porteous

Poole, who charged back to finish fourth in last year’s series despite losing any chance of the series title in the first weekend, admitted to a restless night’s sleep on Saturday as he prepared to face Eckstein.

“There were a lot of nerves (on Saturday) night and (Sunday) morning, I just tried to stick to a routine and do what I’ve done the last couple of days and came out on top.

“Today was my day.’’

But Poole admitted that in a weekend of racing, the series title came down to a matter of centimetres.

“I can honestly say it came down to less than half a metre,’’ he said.

“If (Eckstein) had’ve stood up half a footstep in front of me, I daresay he would have got to that finish line.’’