LAKE PLACID – Elizabeth Izzo is perfectly happy being called a number of different names. She likes Lizzo, Izzo, Liz and Elizabeth. It doesn’t seem to matter a whole lot to the 24-year-old from Lake Placid.

Now, you can also call her an Ironman, and a fast one at that.

Before last month’s race, Izzo’s only experience competing in triathlons was on a relatively small scale at the weekly High Peaks Cyclery Mini-Triathlons on Monday nights in her hometown and the annual Tupper Lake Tinman. That all ended on July 24 in one of the Ironman series’ biggest events. Not only did Izzo finish her first attempt at the full 140.6-mile distance in the Ironman Lake Placid, a race that included more than 2,000 competitors, she blew away her projected time.

And now, with an impressive result from the Ironman Lake Placid added to her resume, Izzo will soon be heading to Kona, Hawaii to compete on triathlon’s biggest stage at the Ironman World Championships.

Izzo completed Lake Placid’s difficult course in 11 hours, 15 minutes and 9 seconds, and in the process, qualified for Hawaii by taking first place in her 19-24 age group.

“11:15:09,” Izzo said with a grin on Tuesday. “My goal was to finish under 12 hours, and I thought that was a bit lofty. I was wearing a watch, but I didn’t set the timer on it, so I didn’t know that was my time. I meant to start it, but it never started. I did just fine without it.”

Izzo, who spent her early childhood days in Keene and then moved to Lake Placid at age 9, lives along state Route 73 in the shadow of the Olympic Ski Jumps. That’s just about where she passed the leader of her age group, Julia Slyer of Averill Park, during the second leg of the marathon run, although she had no idea who that rival was.

“The first few miles of the run were hard and then the last stretch from my house into town was challenging because someone told me that I had caught the first place girl from my age group,” Izzo said. “I didn’t know what she looked like. Then, when I was told she was behind me, I didn’t look. I just sped up.

“Every woman I saw I went and chased,” Izzo continued. “I have no idea how many people I chased down. It was endless. There were always people to chase. It’s harder to be in front when you know you are the one being chased. When there are people in front of you, you know you can just chase and chase. I find it easier that way.”

Izzo said her first Ironman seemed to fly by, and added that she really didn’t start hurting until the next day.

“I never had a point where I was thinking that I felt like I was dragging myself along, or ‘Wow, this is crazy, why did I sign up? Nothing like that, never. The whole day went by so fast. But the next day, I was introduced to a whole new world of pain. I had never been so sore in my life. Every bone in my body hurt – getting up, sitting down, walking, turning – but it went away.”

Izzo won’t be the first member of her family to race in the Ironman World Championships. Her mom Sandy was on the course in 2000. In fact, all six members of her immediate family have participated in triathlons. Her father Bill raced in Lake Placid last month and has crossed the finish line in the Ironman here four times, while her mother has completed the grueling event five times.

The oldest of four siblings, “Lizzo” has also now seen her sister Anna and her brothers Joe and Jesse all participate in triathlon, but not yet at an Ironman distance.

“Growing up watching your parents do that is pretty inspirational, and then eventually the seeds are planted,” she said. “Having watched people at the finish line for years and years and cheering them on, it looks like you can savor the moment way more, but all of a sudden, you enter the oval and see the finish. You have to take it in all at once because it goes by so fast, and it’s the best feeling in the world.

“When you get there, it’s so surreal,” Izzo continued. “Your body’s been moving for hours and hours; there’s the finish line and it’s done. It’s super fast.”

Izzo said getting to Hawaii was in the back of her mind before she competed in Lake Placid, but qualifying for the world championships never factored into her race plan. However, she said the training she went through for Lake Placid will be a benefit when she takes on Kona’s course on October 8. An exercise specialist with the cardiac rehabilitation department at the Adirondack Medical Center, as well as an EMT and driver with the Lake Placid Ambulance Service, Izzo said she treats her training like it’s another job.

“Fortunately, I’ve been able to work my training in pretty successfully,” she said. “I know what I have to do each day, but I don’t always know what time. The base is there (from the Ironman Lake Placid) so I don’t have to do as many long rides and long runs. The hardest thing I’ve been doing right now are the mini-tris, and I’ll do a century ride and probably a 20- or 22-mile run. Those are both about three weeks away, and I’ll start decreasing from there.”

Although Izzo didn’t have her sights set on Hawaii when she experienced racing in her first Ironman, as soon as she crossed the finish line, she didn’t even have to think about that next big adventure.

“When I crossed the line and saw my family, they told my I was first, and I said right then, ‘Wow, well I guess I’m going to Hawaii.’ At that very moment, I knew I was going. I’ve been working really hard to be able to afford it. I’ve set up a Go Fund Me, and people from town are being awesome.”

In Hawaii, Izzo will be racing on a course that doesn’t have the hills that are an infamous feature of the Ironman Lake Placid, but she could be dealing with plenty of heat and wind.

“My goal there is to finish and hopefully not feel sick because it’s going to be hot and humid,” she said. “Normally, my body runs pretty well in the heat. I like feeling the sun. I like feeling heat and sweating. It makes me feel healthy.”