“Pulling out [of the race] in probably my most important race is extremely disappointing. There are no excuses,” Riddle said in a heartfelt message on his social media channels.
“I think the island did humble me, but I have my reasons.
"I’ve been dealing with a sciatic nerve issue that really played up at the beginning stage of the bike, and that put me on the back foot.”
Riddle said the physical setback, combined with the demands of the course and the penalty he incurred, left him repeatedly having to dig himself out of difficult situations.
“Yeah, just digging myself a grave way too many times on top of the penalty.
"That’s a whole other discussion, but yeah, I just blew up mentally, physically.”
The decision was made even more difficult by what happened earlier in the year at the Ironman African Championship in Nelson Mandela Bay.
Riddle persevered through that race despite struggling badly during the marathon, walking sections of the run but refusing to quit and ultimately making it to the finish line.
He finished 40th overall and 21st in the pro division with a total time of 09:14:09.
That experience stayed with him throughout his Hawaii race.
“At the beginning of the year at Ironman South Africa, I persevered, and I finished the Ironman even though I walked,” he said.
“And that was a story that stuck with me and a lot of people and was playing through my head the whole time.
"I was going back and forth on whether I should stop or not.”
This time, however, Riddle decided that continuing could carry consequences beyond one disappointing result.
“I’m 26. I’ve got a long career ahead of me, and I think a full marathon when I’m already broken in this heat could have [had] some long-term effects, so I just did not want to take the risk.”
