COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho - An Explosive Ordnance Disposal platoon leader completed the Ironman Triathlon in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. John G. Ziomek, a platoon leader from the 787th Ordnance Company (EOD), proved his mettle during the 140.6-mile endurance competition.

The Ironman Triathlon included a 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike ride and 26.2-mile marathon run. Ziomek was one of 988 competitors in the grueling race.

The swim was in Lake Coeur d'Alene and the bike and run were through the hilly terrain around the lake. With more than 109 miles of shoreline, the 25-mile-long Lake Coeur d'Alene varies in width from one to three miles. Ziomek said the weather started around 70 degrees and climbed to 82 degrees during the bike ride.

"I finished in 14 hours, 49 minutes and 33 seconds," said Ziomek. "The highlight of the race was running through the finish line at the end."

After completing a half Ironman in 2022, Ziomek was encouraged to sign up for the full Ironman Triathlon by 1st Lt. Zachary Aloma, an EOD platoon leader from the 65th Ordnance Company (EOD) on Fort Wainwright, Alaska.

"We signed up for the race so that we could challenge ourselves physically," said Ziomek. "I prepared by just exercising whenever I had a break in my training schedule."

Ziomek said he swam, biked and ran every week, except during field training exercises, where he focused on nutrition to stay ready.

"My biggest challenge was around hour six on the bike. I knew I had been on the bike for a long time but I also had two hours and a few big climbs left," said Ziomek. "I got through by just working my race and thinking about how awesome of an opportunity it was to compete in the first place."

The Joint Base Lewis-McChord-based 787th EOD Company "Sasquatches" are assigned to the 3rd EOD Battalion, 71st EOD Group and 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command, the U.S. military's premier all hazards formation.

American soldiers and U.S. Army civilians from the 20th CBRNE Command deploy from 19 bases in 16 states take on the world's most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and allied operations.

For his service, Ziomek was named the 20th CBRNE Command Defender of the Week.

As the U.S. Army's explosive experts, EOD technicians confront and defeat everything from hand grenades to nuclear weapons. Not only do EOD techs enable military operations around the world but they also safeguard the American people from explosive threats and protect the nation's senior most leaders.

The Sasquatches cover 75 counties of Washington, Oregon and Northern California during explosive response missions, both on and off post.

After enlisting in 2013 and serving as an enlisted Army infantryman, Ziomek attended the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and graduated with a geography major in 2020.

"I decided to become an EOD officer because I believe that there is more value in preventing people from being hurt or killed," said Ziomek, a native of Ellington, Connecticut. "During and after wars, there are a lot of explosive hazards, and many of them kill or injure civilians. EOD works to take as many of those explosive hazards off the battlefield as possible, so it appealed to me from a humanitarian perspective."

Capt. Savannah B. Faught, the commander of the 787th EOD Company, said Ziomek is an exceptional officer who leads by example.

"For him to complete not only our intense training cycle these past eight months but also to remain focused and dedicated in his fitness goal leading up to the Ironman was nothing short of inspiring," said Faught. "John is a fantastic example of what we look for in our leaders, a humble and caring individual who demonstrates the Army values in his everyday life."