Meet a 13-year-old Newport Beach girl aiming for her 26th triathlon

Alexandra Law crossed the finish line with a big smile splashed across her face.

She was hooked.

Alexandra’s mom, Chi Law, thinks back to that first triathlon a few years ago, when they had no idea how the competitive scene worked. They simply showed up to do the Newport Beach course, and after her then eight-year-old daughter finished the race, they packed up and went home.

Out of curiosity, they looked up Alexandra’s results online later that night. Turns out, Alexandra missed the awards ceremony where she would have learned she took first place in the girls division. In fact, her time was better than that of all the boys.

That was just the start.

Alexandra is gearing up for her 26th triathlon this weekend at the Nautica Malibu Triathlon. She has become a veteran when it comes to the run, bike and swim courses held around Southern California.

And she’s only 13.

A newfound love

Alexandra first got a glimpse of triathlon racers doing the Pacific Coast Triathlon during a family camping trip at Crystal Cove, when she was 8. By then, she had already been swimming half her life, and swam competitively in pools.

Chi, who calls her daughter an “old soul,” scoured online for nearby races she could try after she showed an interest.

It was a few months later at the Newport Beach Triathlon, when Alexandra beat all the others in her kids division, that she declared: “That was awesome! Find me another one to do!”

“I thought I did pretty good,” Alexandra said on a recent day. “It was a lot easier than I expected. It was really fun.”

Within a year, Alexandra found the kids races were too easy, so she started entering the adult categories. Chi, who lives in Newport Beach, was surprised by her daughter’s newfound love.

“When she was little, she was scared of everything,” Chi said. “She was very shy, she got freaked out by everything.”

But as Alexandra has competed in longer and more complex races, it has been her mother that is the fearful one.

“I’m always a little nervous when she tries something new, especially when it’s a new race with a new course,” Chi said.

Race with a view

Alexandra, who is a Newport Beach junior lifeguard during the summer, likes the diversity that comes with triathlons. Athletes have to be skilled and fast at all three disciplines, and need to know how to do quick transitions between the races.

Picking a favorite course over the years is no easy task. She said she loves the Crystal Cove event because of the ocean views, but has also competed in Ventura, Santa Barbara, Redondo Beach, even at the military base in Los Alamitos.

She’s also done several Alcatraz open water swims in chilly San Francisco waters.

“People are pretty rough in open water, compared to pool swimming,” she said.

Alexandra said she’s learned many life lessons while racing – the biggest being the value of perseverance.

“You can’t give up and once you’ve started something and committed to doing it, you can’t turn back,” she said. “I’ve also realized that you can do a lot more than you think you can, once you’re doing it.”

If you go

The Nautica Malibu Triathlon is Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 15 and 16. The event is a benefit for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles.

On Saturday, an Olympic Distance Race — a 1.5k swim, 40k bike ride, and 10k run — will test racers. Sunday, the classic distance race will be held, with a half-mile swim, a 17-mile bike ride and a 4-mile run.

The Zuma Beach parking lot opens at 4 a.m. with races starting at 7 a.m. both days. There will also be sand castle demonstrations and exhibits. On Sunday, a Nautica Kids Run and Tot Trot starts at 9:45 a.m.

For more information, go to auticamalibutri.com