Chris Sanzo got off to a slow start athletically … through no fault of his own.
He was born a “blue baby” with several holes between his right and left ventricles, leaving him an open-heart surgery survivor.
As a youth, Sanzo was only allowed to play Little League baseball. Even in high school, his sports options were limited to golf and diving.
Indeed, he was so proficient in the latter at Olean High that went on to compete at Central Connecticut State, a Division I university.
But that didn’t satisfy his craving to compete and, finally, after a couple of decades of being cautioned against playing most organized sports, Sanzo received some good news. In his late 30s, Chris got the OK from his cardiologist to attempt a short triathlon on a trial basis.
That opportunity morphed into a love of the sport and, for the past decade, Sanzo, now 49, has completed over two dozen triathlons including the grueling Lake Placid Ironman, a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and full marathon run (26.2 miles) … in the heat of July.
Last year, in a field of over 2,500, he finished 1,529th.
But as Becky Wood DiSorbo, a former OHS swim star and high school friend of Sanzo noted, “Chris has proven that heart patients can not only lead active lives, but also thrive in the world of endurance sports.”
And that prompted her email to the Times Herald sports department alerting us to an honor Sanzo will be accorded next Wednesday in Denmark.
Chris, CEO of Olean’s Sanzo Beverage, was selected to carry the United States flag at the International Triathlon Union (ITU) World Championships. Specifically, he’ll be carrying it for the opening of the Aquabike World Championships opening ceremonies in Odense.
At the event, athletes will compete for the world ITU titles in duathlon (running, cycling), cross triathlon (swimming, mountain biking, trail running), aquathlon (swimming, running), aquabike and long-distance triathlon and it will take place in the cities of Middlefart, Svendborg and Odense with some 5,000 international athletes participating.
Sanzo qualified for the world championships by placing in the top 10 nationally in the 50 – 54 age group in the Aquabike race at the Miami Man Nationals competition last December.
“Representing the USA at the ITU World Championships is my ultimate achievement as an athlete and a life-long heart patient,” Sanzo said. “I’m thrilled to be selected as a flag bearer and to share this special lifetime moment with my wife, two teenage daughters, and my mother who will be joining me in Denmark. Their support has been instrumental to my success in this journey.”
The five world championships are being held on the island of Fyn, starting yesterday and concluding a week from Saturday.
DiSorbo and her husband, Joe, founder and former CEO of Webgistix, meanwhile, are temporarily retired in Nevada after the sale of their part of the company. However, Becky, 48, has developed her own affinity for triathlons, having won her age group (45-49) in April’s Boulder City Rage Sprint, a 1,500-meter swim, 40-mile bike ride and 10-kilometer run. She not only won her 15-woman group, but also was the No. 5 female finisher among over 200 competitors of her gender.
The win qualified her to compete in the USA Triathlon Age Group Nationals at Cleveland in August.
(Chuck Pollock, a Times Herald sports columnist, can be reached at cpollock@oleantimesherald.com)
