Jon McGowan, Chief Executive of MAC Group, has earned the accolade of world’s 5th fittest CEO after participating in the gruelling Island House Triathlon in the Bahamas recently.
 
The invitational event, #Pain in Paradise, is the brainchild of veteran fund manager Mark Holowesko and attracts 40 of the world’s greatest professional triathletes who compete for a prize fund of $500,000. It takes place over three days and is a true test of endurance with different combinations of Swim, Bike, Run being completed every day.
 
The Fittest CEO competition runs parallel with the professional event and sees CEOs joining some of the world’s top professional athletes including Olympic champion Gwen Jorgensen and former Ironman World Champion Sebastian Kienle.
 
Jon’s placing in the event is all the more remarkable given that he has only just recovered from a broken elbow and on the second day of the triathlon crashed off his bike onto the same arm. Amazingly he was fit enough to continue on to the next swim and then set about posting the best time of all CEOs in the subsequent final run. However the five minutes lost while receiving medical attention was costly and he eventually finished fifth, just seven minutes behind the outright winner, Shannon Horn.
 
As the only non-US resident CEO to participate in this year’s event, Jon was selected after his qualification for the World Duathlon Championships, held in Spain in June, and ITU World Triathlon Championships, held in Mexico in September. Although Jon’s elbow injury prevented him representing Great Britain this year, his triathlon track record over the past two years coupled with Jon’s recent success in expanding the MAC Group  - resulted in him receiving a coveted invitation to the Bahamas.
 
On the last day of the triathlon he was paired with professionals Rachel Klamer and Leon Griffin and said it was a privilege to compete with such talented individuals:
 
“It was a great experience to run, swim and cycle alongside some of the biggest names in the sport, as well as meet so many CEOs at the top of their game,” says Jon.
 
“I made some fantastic new friends and it was an inspirational few days, particularly as the Bahamas had just been badly hit by Hurricane Matthew and, via the competition’s link with the charity More Than Sport, we were able to help hand build bicycles for some of the local children whose school had been badly damaged while we were there.”
 
Jon is grateful for the support and encouragement he receives from his wife Heather, who is also a keen triathlete and swimmer, and he fully appreciates the backing from the team at MAC and is an advocate for balancing business, with family and a healthy lifestyle.
 
“I’m a strong believer that sport helps not just to keep you fit but also to relieve stress and re-energise the batteries.  Working in the insurance and healthcare industry, it’s important to me to lead by example and set aside the time to stay fit and well.”
 
While Jon has yet to decide which competitions he will pursue next year, he has plenty to occupy him at MAC over the winter months. “Following on from our investment in Nugent Sante earlier in the year, we have several developments in the pipeline and expect to make some exciting announcements in 2017.”
 
The Island House Triathlon was filmed and will appear on TV in the US in early 2017.