Jenny’s toughest race
Triathlon champion is not letting cancer slow her down
Eight months after receiving a life-changing cancer diagnosis, one of Australia’s greatest sporting inspirations has been nominated for the prestigious Daphne Pirie Spirit of Sport Award.
Jenny Alcorn is one of more than 50 nominees across all categories at this year’s Sports Gold Coast awards evening.
While the 65-year-old is grateful for the recognition, Alcorn said she was surprised to hear of her nomination.
“It’s an absolute honour even just to be nominated because I know the calibre of awesome people on the Gold Coast that would be up for these kinds of awards,” she said. “It’s another way for me to stay positive and move forward to whatever is ahead of me.
“My passion is for my sport and for helping people and children and adults to achieve their goals in life, whether it be in sport or even just giving them the confidence to be able to move forward in life with more skill and more.”
The World Kona Ironwoman Champion (Age Group) and legendary triathlete was last year spun into a whirlwind of chemotherapy and treatments after a sudden seizure she’d initially put down to a hamstring injury.
“As you can imagine it was an absolute shock for me to have been diagnosed with supposedly an incurable brain tumour,” Alcorn said.
“I don’t think anyone who has glioblastoma can really understand where it’s come from. In my case, I may have had it longer than I actually knew about.”
Alcorn suffered a seizure in 2023, which, while she considered it “weird”, didn’t raise alarm bells until later.
“I kind of struggled just getting down the stairs and my left leg was a bit funny,” she said. “I took myself off to the hospital after my training.”
Scans found two tumours in Alcorn’s brain, which were removed. A few months later a diagnosis of glioblastoma, a rare and aggressive form of cancer, came as a complete shock to the then 64-year-old.
Alcorn hasn’t let her condition define her.
“It’s just obviously life changing,” she said.
“I have to pull all my instincts, all my strength and all my positive being into moving forward from here as much as I can, even knowing how bad the prognosis is.
“So far, I’ve been very proud of myself for being able to still attend all my coaching sessions and still be involved.
“I’ve hired specific kinds of equipment that I’m hoping will kind of assist in the longevity of my life – I’ve got a helmet on my head which has infra-red waves, I go to hyperbaric chambers to oxygenate the brain and help get rid of toxins in the body.”
Alcorn’s battle is terrifying, and with no way to predict good or bad days, she has already chosen to focus on a “next big thing” – the 2024 World Triathlon Multisport World Championships.
Set to land in Townsville this August, the 12-day event will host 19 races across five levels, including Age Group, Para triathletes, Junior, under-23 and Elites.
“A few people in my squad pointed out to me, ‘You’ve got to nominate, at least put an expression of interest in,’” Alcorn said.
“I thought about it and figured why not – why don’t I just set myself a goal?
“You know, there’s a chance that I could still be around so I need a target and need a goal.”
Alcorn said she was simply one of those people with the will to hurt and push hard – a “give-it-everything” person.
“That never changes. It just might be at a different level, but I’ve always had that fight and that grit in me,” she said.