Who: “Robson” Lindberg

Born: Helsinki, Finland January 30th 1986

Early sporting love: Motocross, Snowcross and sailing

Hobbies: Mental coaching, Ice Hockey, surfing, watching sports and competing in any form

Achievements: 2 silver and 1 bronze medals in Finnish national sailing championships, 10hour 14min Ironman distance finish

Education: Bachelor in Economics

Major Sports injuries: 1 broken vertebrae, 7 cerebral bleedings, post concussion syndrome, 10 concussions, broken thigh bone, torn thumb joints (left and right)

Although born in Helsinki, I’ve lived in 5 countries before the age of 11. Three months old, my parents packed up and we moved to St Petersburg, Florida. Therefore, the first language I ever learned was English although, my mother tongue is Swedish. After living in the US, Germany, UK, Sweden we moved back to Finland. I have two younger siblings, all of us kids are born in different countries.

After constantly moving from country to country, a certain skill of adapting is honed. New friends, new cultures and often new languages. Even though we moved from country to country, my love for sports never died. I have competed in the following disciplines: motocross, snowcross, sailing, bandy, ice hockey, freestyle skiing.

It is no surprise that with the list of disciplines above, I have also had to recover from injuries, requiring me to call on my skill to adapt. When I was 18, I was hospitalised due to migraines. It was only six months later I met the right doctor and got the help I needed to fully recover. It took four years in total.

While I was doing my military service, at the age of 19, I noticed a dramatic decline in my migraine attacks. The armed forces offered rigorous routines and apt amount of physical workout, with the occasional training exercises leaving me sleep deprived and on the edge of physical and mental meltdowns. This was proof that I alone, accompanied with a healthy lifestyle, am in control of my migraines.

In February 2016, I received a hard but clean check in a hockey game. This hit left me unconscious and resulted in several cerebral haemorrhages, affecting my coordination, eye sight, ability to process information and impair my speech and thought. Yet again, it was time to recall my skill to adapt and recover.

In between the migraines and hockey hit, I made the best bet in my in my life. To beat my friend in an Olympic distance triathlon in 2013. Since October 2012, I’ve been addicted to triathlon and since the day I found out about Kona, I have dreamt about qualifying for Kona.

I will make it to Kona because triathlon is all about hard work and dedication. Its also about adapting, a skill I’ve honed my entire life.

Personal motto: Adapt and Excel