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Lausanne, Switzerland (5 January 2012) - The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has dismissed the appeal filed by Harry Wiltshire against the International Triathlon Union (ITU) regarding a 6-month suspension imposed on him due to unsportsmanlike conduct at the European Championships on 25 June 2011.

 

Following the elite men's race, Wiltshire's unsafe and unsportsmanlike conduct during 2011 Pontevedra European Championships was investigated.  The ITU Executive Board-with the exception of members from the British and Spanish federations-voted to impose a six-month suspension against Wiltshire based on violations to the ITU Competition Rules (2.1 a.) (i), 3.3 a.) (i), Appendix L 6. and Appendix L 7). 

 

Wiltshire filed an appeal against ITU in CAS on 10 August 2011 to challenge the decision of the Executive Board.  The CAS panel reviewed video evidence and heard testimonies from Wiltshire as well as from on-course technical officials and the race referee.  The panel concluded that Wiltshire did in fact violate ITU Competition Rules with reference to "repeated unsportsmanlike conduct" and that the Executive Board had the right to sanction Wiltshire with a suspension.

 

Furthermore, the panel decided the 6-month suspension was not evidently and grossly disproportionate as Wiltshire had contended.  As a result, Wiltshire's appeal was dismissed and CAS required the appellant to pay ITU the amount of 2,500 Swiss Francs as compensation for this legal process.

 

ITU is strongly committed to maintaining the integrity of the sport by ensuring athletes are competing within the competition rules and with a high degree of sportsmanship.

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Auckland, New Zealand (20 November 2011) -  New Zealand's Andrea Hewitt put the perfect finishing touch on her already excellent 2011 season, leading a bike breakaway en route to a dominant World Cup win in Auckland.

 

After impressive victories in Beijing and Yokohama, Hewitt was the female triathlete to beat at home in the final World Cup race this year.  And the World Championship silver medallist did not disappoint on the course that will host the 2012 Dextro Energy Triathlon Series Grand Final.

 

After quickly catching the leaders from the swim, Hewitt rode hard to lead a breakaway of five athletes on the tough, hilly and technical bike course before easily pulling away on the run for her third consecutive major win in a time of 2 hours 14 minutes and 12 seconds, almost a full minute ahead of Japan's Tomoko Sakimoto who claimed her second consecutive World Cup silver.  Her teammate Mariko Adachi claimed bronze, finishing a further 13 seconds behind Sakimoto.

 

Hewitt's comfortable winning margin allowed her plenty of time to soak up the atmosphere in Auckland, where thousands of people lined the CBD streets. In the final kilometre, she took the time to wave and high-five fans, and had a huge smile on her face all the way to the finish line.

"It's amazing, the feeling was so incredible running that last lap. It's actually really hard to run and smile at the same time. But, it was just such a great race," Hewitt said.

It was an excellent day for the Japanese women's team, with 40-year-old three-time Olympian Kiyomi Niwata running through the field to claim fifth and Ai Ueda's ninth giving them four athlete inside the top 10.  Click here for full recap

 

 

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This year is going to be different; 6 weeks ago I gave up my full-time job as a metal roofer to try and compete with the rest of the full time athletes. I have had 6 weeks of training hard and having time to rest between training sessions. One thing I don’t miss is getting up at 3 o’clock in the morning to ride 90km before work and then standing on a roof for 8 hours, before having to run or swim that afternoon. 

The day started off with a 2 hour drive south to a little town near maitland called Morpeth. Tenell (My Girlfriend) and I arrived there at about 6:00 am and had plenty of time before the race started. I signed in and got my race number and checked the bike in. I did my usual 20-minute warm up jog before pulling on the wetsuit. We all headed down to the swim start, which was 300m from the transition area. 7:30 came and we were off for the 2km swim in the fresh water of the river, initially heading against the tide. I had put myself near the good swimmers but straight away Joey Lampe was off and no one went with him. At about half way through the swim I was felling good in 3rd place just behind Tim Reed. 

We exited the water and had a 300-meter run to our bikes. My transition was smooth and efficient giving me 2nd place at the start of the bike leg, with Joey up the road. I knew I had to work hard to ride up to him. When I had got my feet in my shoes and had a drink I started to have a dig and drop Reedy and Struggler (Nath Stewart) and was after Joey. At around 25 km into the 60km bike leg I rode up to him and was feeling alright but decided to have a break and ride with him for a bit. We arrived at the half way mark on the bike with my clock showing 45mins for 30 km; I thought I would have another dig with a tail wind and shock joey. I took off and put a good gap into him. I arrived back into transition with a little gap over Joey and about 90 seconds over Reedy and Struggler. Out of transition I was feeling good but could see Joey catching me my legs were a little burnt from the ride but were coming good at about 5 km in I was passed by Reedy and Joey. The day ended with a 3rd place I was happy to have raced Morpeth because it is good just to see where you are at and what needs working on. 

So next up I have Forster Ultimate distance triathlon on the 16th of October.

I have just started my new website aswell

www.adamholborow.com

and my blog is http://adamholborow.blogspot.com/  

Would just like to say a thanks to my sponsors 

TRS cycles 

Shimano Australia

SIS Nutrition 

Computrainier 

Kuota bike Australia

Hope you guys enjoyed and let me know what you think.  

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Vancouver, Canada (13 October 2011) - The International Triathlon Union (ITU) today unveiled its schedule for the 2012 ITU Triathlon World Cup Series.  In the crucial Olympic year, the 2012 season will travel to nine familiar host cities on four continents.

 

2012 ITU Triathlon World Cup Series Schedule

March 24-25: Mooloolaba, Australia

April 22: Ishigaki, Japan

May 6-7: Huatulco, Mexico

June 17: Banyoles, Spain

July 1: Guatape, Colombia

July 8: Edmonton, Canada

July 15: Tiszaujvaros, Hungary

September 22: Tongyeong, South Korea

October 7: Cancun, Mexico

 

"Next year will mark the 22^nd season of the ITU's flagship series," said Marisol Casado, ITU President and IOC Member.  "The ITU Triathlon World Cup Series has traveled to more than 30 different countries on all five continents since 1991 and it continues to showcase the world's top triathletes, from the sport's legends and Olympic medallists to the World Champions of tomorrow."

 

The 2012 season again opens in Australia, the 8^th straight year Mooloolaba will host a World Cup. 

 

Next up is a staple on the ITU calendar: Ishigaki, Japan, a World Cup that began in 1996 and has been held every since then. 

 

Huatulco, Mexico, will host a World Cup for the 5^th straight year.  But instead of October, the event moves up to May, making it the final World Cup inside the Olympic qualification period.

 

The only brand new stop on the World Cup circuit is Banyoles, Spain.  Located approximately 120km northeast of Barcelona, Banyoles hosted a highly successful Premium European Cup in July of this year.

 

July opens in Colombia as the World Cup tour returns to Guatape, the picturesque resort town just outside Medellin.  From Colombia, the circuit travels north to Edmonton, Canada, which is back on the calendar for the 7^th time since 2002.  Edmonton will be the only North American round of the World Cup series.

 

The final World Cup before the London 2012 Olympic Games will be Tiszaujvaros, Hungary, the second-oldest World Cup in ITU history.  Next year it will celebrate its 16^th birthday.

 

After the London Olympic Games, the World Cup circuit travels to Tongyeong, South Korea for the 6^thtime since 2003.

 

The final World Cup of 2012 will be in Cancun, Mexico, back on the calendar after a 4-year absence. Since 1995 Cancun has hosted nine World Cups and two ITU World Championships.  Cancun will be the final ITU event before the 2012 World Champions are crowned in Auckland, New Zealand on October 20-22.

 

Click here for the schedule of the 2012 ITU World Championship Series

 

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Yokohama, Japan (19 September 2011) - Andrea Hewitt soared to her second consecutive victory in the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series today in Yokohama.  After a virtuoso performance at last weekend's Grand Final in Beijing, Hewitt followed that up with another to stunning display for her third career series win and second in as many weeks. 

 

"To back up Beijing here in Japan is really cool," said Hewitt. "Each lap got hotter and hotter and harder and harder and I probably slowed down as well but I managed to hold on so I'm so happy."

 

Emma Moffatt came across for silver while Hewitt's teammate Kate McIlroy made it two on the podium for New Zealand after breaking through for her first podium finish at the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series.

 

This was the first major sports event in Japan since the devastating earthquake and tsunami hit in March.  Originally this event was slated for May 14-15 but was re-scheduled for September 19.

 

Hewitt was among the leaders for the entire race and by early in the 4-lap 10km run, she and Moffatt pushed to the front while others began to fade amidst the intense heat and humidity.

 

Setting a torrid pace, Hewitt soon dropped Moffatt and emerged as the woman to beat in this race while a battle ensued for silver and bronze.  At one point newly crowned World Champion Helen Jenkins had pulled ahead of Moffatt but it was short-lived as the Jenkins couldn't keep up.

 

Clutching a comfortable lead, Hewitt had enough time to high-five the Japanese fans as she approached the finish line, stopping the clock at 1 hour, 59 minutes and 17 seconds. 

 

"Today was about a run race," said Hewitt, who blazed to the day's fastest split of 34:30. "A big group came off the bike together so I went out as hard as I could on the run and ran the first part with Emma Moffatt.  After that when I was alone, I was just looking forward.  I didn't want to look back; I was just going for the finish line and going as hard as I could."

 

Triathlon legend Vanessa Fernandes finished up in 26th place in the first event of her comeback.

 

Before the race, a moment of silence was observed for the victims of the devastating earthquake and tsunami in March.  This event was the first major international sporting event in Japan since then.

 

Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Yokohama

1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10 run

Final Results - Elite Women

1.	Andrea Hewitt	NZL		01:59:17
2.	Emma Moffatt	AUS		01:59:30
3.	Kate McIlroy	NZL		01:59:44
4.	Aileen Morrison	IRL		01:59:48
5.	Emma Jackson	AUS		01:59:57

 

Elite Men Review

In the men's race that followed, Portugal's Joao Silva broke through for his first ever victory in the Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series. Amidst the intense heat in Yokohama, Silva didn't wilt but instead rose to the occasion and to the top of the podium. 

 

"This course suits me better than Beijing; I like it hot. I was a little disappointed after Beijing and I haven't been back home for a long time, so it's a great end to the season and I am really happy," said Silva.  "I have to thank all the people from Yokohama for holding such a great race and also supporting the athletes along all the kilometres."

 

Russia claimed the other two spots on the podium with Alexander Bryukhankov and Dmitry Polyansky taking silver and bronze respectively.

 

A full field of 65 men dove into the warm waters of Yokohama Bay for the 1.5km, 2-lap swim.  Polyansky led a 1-2-3-4 Russian lead out of the swim, followed closely by Silva. 

 

Out onto the flat and technical 40km bike course, a massive group of approximately 50 men came together.  With no major breakaways, the pack stayed intact throughout the eight laps. 

 

A pair of triathlon legends-Simon Whitfield and Chris McCormack-led the men into T2.  But it was Japan's Yuichi Hosoda delighted the crowd as he shot out of transition and hit the 10km run course first with Whitfield and Docherty just behind him. 

 

Hosoda attacked hard early, fuelled by the desire to secure an Olympic spot that was at stake with a top-8 finish.  But the Asian Games gold medallist could not maintain the lead, especially with Silva bearing down on him.  Silva was in 12th position at the start of the run but by the end of the first lap, he had overtaken Hosoda and opened up a lead of almost ten seconds.

 

Laying down a blistering pace that matched the weather, Silva extended the gap over the next two laps, while the battle for silver and bronze heated up behind him between Russian teammates Bryukhankov and Polyansky.  Bryukhankov was digging into Silva's lead and for a moment looked like he might reel him in.  But Silva did not back down and broke the tape at 1 hour, 49 minutes, 21 seconds to secure the biggest victory of his career.  He blitzed the 10km run, hammering out a 30:14 split on a course that was measured accurately at ten kilometres.

 

Double Olympic medallist Whitfield came back strong on the run to finish in fourth place; his best ever result in a Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series event.  Chrabot rounded out the top-5 with his season-best showing.

 

Hosoda stepped up to the challenge to secure a top-8 and Olympic spot but fell just short, finishing in 10th place, by far the best of WCS result of his career.  

 

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Beijing, China (10 September 2011) - Great Britain's Alistair Brownlee has firmly stamped himself as the man to beat at the London 2012 Olympic Games, after capturing his second ITU World Championship title in stunning style on the 2008 Olympic course in Beijing. In yet another dominating performance, Brownlee kept his winning record Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Grand Final races intact in Beijing on Saturday.

  

Brownlee has won each Dextro Energy Triathlon Series Grand Final since the series started in 2009 and after hitting T2 with a lead group of 30, he turned in his trademark blistering run in cold and wet conditions in Beijing to win the Grand Final, with Switzerland's Sven Riederer just edging out Jonathan Brownlee for silver. Alistair finished with a run split of 29 minutes 50 seconds, even after stopping to high five spectators down the home straight.

  

Those results just confirmed the overall 2011 ITU World Championship rankings as they stood before Beijing, with Alistair Brownlee claiming the overall world championship with a points total of

4285 points.  Jonathan Brownlee locked up the silver with 3992 points while last year's World Champion Javier Gomez took the bronze with 3671 total points. Gomez finished sixth overall in Beijing.

 

In the end the conditions played perfectly to the older Brownlee, who stormed to wins in the wet in both Kitzbuehel and London this year, and said that as soon as he saw the tough conditions he was confident.

 

"When I woke up this morning and saw it was cold and wet, I just thought, 'yes,'" he said.

  

"The swim was really easy...we came out first and second, then we knew the bike was dangerous so just really tried to keep in control. On the run, we were running and we got away and it was just like running through treacle today. Then I knew (Jonny) wasn't really great, you realise that when you train together every day. I wanted to keep him with me but I realised I should probably go on that last lap. So it was just great to cross the line really."

 

The win was Alistair's 11^th in a Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU World Championship Series race.

 

Jonathan said he was happy to hold on for Grand Final bronze, and his first elite ITU World Championship medal, after winning the Under23 World Championships last year in Budapest.

 

 "It's a real, real tough course here. It was a pure race, I was the first out of the swim, I didn't actually really want to do that but a few people stopped swimming, so I thought 'push on,' he said.

 

"Then on the bike I thought we were going to get away, there was that group of five and thought we were going to get away. I started the run pretty tired, then I felt alright in the first couple of laps, but then all of a sudden my legs just went completely," said Jonathan.

 

"I'm really pleased I held on for third because I could have quite easily given up, and thought oh this is a bad day, I'll just come sixth or seventh. But it was a hard, hard race out there."

  

Despite the cold conditions the race was quicker than the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the last ITU race to be held on the course. The elite men dove into Shisanling reservoir in the north Beijing district of Changping for the one-lap 1.5km swim leg. Jonathan Brownlee exited first, minus his goggles, and quickly jumped to the front alongside his brother and Russian Alexander Brukhankov. But more than 30 athletes went with them and despite repeated attempts to breakaway, the lead group stayed the same for the six-lap 40km bike.

  

A chase pack led by Australia's Chris McCormack cut the gap to 30 seconds halfway through, but that dropped to 45 seconds on the final lap, leaving the lead pack with the only realistic chance to medal.

  

The Brownlees then jumped out to the lead, but couldn't get more than 10 seconds on a group that included Gomez, Riederer, Brukhankov, Dmitry Polyansky (RUS), David Hauss (FRA) and Laurent Vidal (FRA) until lap three. Alistair Brownlee made his move there, dropping Jonathan. Gomez and Riederer then bridged the gap, before Gomez just fell off the pace and Riederer stormed home to finish second, ending a string of bad luck for Riederer in Beijing.

 

"The first time, I broke my toe, the second time I lost my wedding ring in the lake and the Olympics was very bad for me but now I am second in the Grand Final," said Riederer.

 

Russian Dmitry Polyansky finished fourth, enough to move him up to an overall world championship top 10 finish. France finished with three athletes in the top-10 in the Beijing race, with Laurent Vidal fifth, David Hauss seventh and Vincent Luis eighth. 

 

Reigning Beijing Olympic champion Jan Frodeno (GER), the last man to win on the Beijing course, pulled out of the race on the second bike lap. The other medallists from that Olympic race, Simon Whitfield (CAN) and Bevan Docherty (NZL) had better days, Whitfield's 13th place was his best series result this season, while Docherty finished 19th.

 

Final Results - Dextro Energy Triathlon ITU Triathlon World Championship Grand Final Beijing

Elite Men

1.5km swim, 40km bike, 10km run 

Gold - Alistair Brownlee (GBR) - 1:48:07

Silver - Sven Riederer (SUI) - 1:48:14  

Bronze - Jonathan Brownlee (GBR) - 1:48:17     

4 - Dmitry Polyanskiy (RUS) -  1:48:20   

5 - Laurent Vidal (FRA) - 1:48:24   

6 - Javier Gomez (ESP) - 1:48:27   

7 - David Hauss (FRA) - 1:48:35   

8 - Vincent Luis (FRA) - 1:48:44   

9 - Maik Petzold (GER)  - 1:48:46   

10 - Ivan Rana (ESP) - 1:48:50    

Click here for full field results

  

Final Standings - 2011 ITU Triathlon World Championships

Elite Men

Gold - Alistair Brownlee (4285 points)

Silver - Jonathan Brownlee (3992 points)

Bronze - Javier Gomez (3671 points)

4th - Sven Riederer (3306 points)

5th - Alexander Brukhankov (3208 points)                                                

6th - David Hauss (3157 points)

7th - Laurent Vidal (2844 points)

8th - Dmitry Polyanskiy (2764 points)

9th - Will Clarke (2495 points)

10th - Brad Kahlefeldt (2217 points) 

 

The elite women start at 13:36 local time in Beijing to decide the 2011 World Champion.  Watch live at triathlonlive.tv

                                                                     -30 

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NSW All-Schools Cross Country was held on the 22 of July.  I was in the 14 year age group and raced 4km.  It was held at Eastern Creek Racecourse in Sydney.

The weather on the days previous to the event had been terrible.  It had been raining constantly for the past few days and the track was very soggy.  There were 88 competitors in my race, coming from 11 different government School regions plus, I think, the 10 best Catholic School and the 10 best Independent School runners.

Also due to the conditions of the course a decision was made to race on the actual tarmac used by the cars on race day, a decision I didn't like as I train on a grass track.

I am a newly sponsored SiS athlete and whilst I have used energy drinks in the past I have never used Gels or any of the other products in the SiS product range.

In the lead up to the race I began to drink an energy drink from SiS, and shortly beforehand, I used an SiS gel, to give me more energy for the race.

The race began with 800 metre uphill straight and after an early sprint I settled into the lead bunch and raced quite comfortably in about 4th position around the track.

With about 1km to go the race sped up with the leader making a surge with two others trying to hang on.

Coming into the final straight I was in 6th position with a battle on my hands as the runner behind me was making an effort to catch me, however I sprinted to the line in sixth position.

I was absolutely over the moon with the race as I had come 13th last year and 6th in this race was a very satisfying result. I am a triathlete and was racing against specialised runners.

During the race i felt as though i had more energy and was able to run faster due to the sports food SiS had supplied me with.

A big thanks to the SiS team

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Champion Australian Professional Triahtlete Rebekah Keat has been a busy girl of late. After a slow start to the season due to injury and a bike crash, Bek has been on fire in the last month with a win at the inaugural Challenge Cairns and a sub nine-hour finish at the legendary Challenge Roth event in Germany.

Bek spoke to us during some “recovery time” before she tackles the Alpe d’huez Long Course Triathlon later this month.

First of all, congratulations on your win at the inaugural Challenge Cairns at the start of June! As a long time supporter of the Challenge brand, it must have been so exciting for you to win the first Challenge event in Australia. Tell us about your race there.

Yes I always love to do any Challenge event!! And I can say that the Challenge Family did put on such an amazing race. To finally have one here in my own backyard is so exciting, and to win the inaugural event is fantastic for me! The race for me was ok for the late start to my season. Unfortunately I had had to take 4 weeks forced rest and only 4 weeks later (the month before Cairns) I was hit by a car.I don’t like to line up with excuses, but my preparation to be honest was limited. I went in a little ‘underdone’ and that showed during the run. It was a great start to the season to be able take the win though, and a good stepping stone to the rest of the 2011 season!

How did you find the course at Cairns? Any highlights and general feedback about the festival of events that were ran? Do you think this event will grow into a “must do” race?

I think the event is being talked about a lot and for many it is already a ‘must do’ race!With the likes of ‘Macca’ saying it may surpass races like ‘Roth’ one day, then we know Challenge Cairns is going to grow into something massive!!

For me the highlight was the beautiful bike route, along the coastline and the spectator friendly run finishing right in the middle of Cairns was awesome!

I stayed with my partner and family for a few days after the race! We ate at some great restaurants, did the cruise to the Great Barrier Reef, some snorkelling, a jet sprint and a yacht ride! I will never forget how much fun and how relaxing beautiful Port Douglas was!

You backed up your great race in Cairns with a third place finish at Challenge Roth in Germany in a lightning fast 8.58 just a few weeks ago. Were you pleased with your race?

Again without sounding cocky, I was disappointed in my run as I have run a 2:55 marathon PB there just two years ago when I broke the world record alongside Wellington. This year, I came off the bike around 10 minutes down and went for it during the first 10km of the run holding a great pace. However, the fitness just wasn’t there to do that yet, but again stepping stones and building a good foundation for the end of the season to finish it with a bang!

You have now raced at Roth several times, what keeps drawing you back? Would you recommend it to other Australians?

Wow I get asked this all the time, and until you have experienced Roth yourself its so hard to explain the ‘electric atmosphere’, I just can’t do it justice! I compare Roth to HAWAII and I must say the atmosphere during the Roth event and at the finish line surpasses even the Hawaii Iornman World Championships!

 Roth is such an iconic event on the world stage and is famous for its fast times. What can you attribute this to?

Well the rumours were always that the course is short, this year they added 2km to the bike course, 3 of us compared computers after the race and all got 178-179 km , so it may be 1km short, farely  insignificant! I think the main reason its fast is firstly the swim is dead flat, no chop and in two straight lines, thus you don’t lose time weaving or turning. The bike road surface is superb, fast hot mix and sealed perfectly which is at least 1-2km faster than some of the ‘Aussie’ roads. The run is now through town and defiantly not short, but it is fast again because of the surface. Your legs are not as pounded by the hard road surface as we run on a dirt trail almost the whole marathon. I believe that is what makes the run fast, the legs are not as fatigued as quickly.The final thing is definitely the 150,000 or more people they have watching throughout the course. You are never alone and constantly cheered on by spectators! This definitely helps you to push that little bit more and go that little bit faster, I’m sure all would agree! ;)

Speaking of fast.....Chrissie Wellingtons 8.18 is just unbelievable!! What is it like to race her? 

In 2009 at Roth I was only 7 minutes behind CW, but now she is at a new level!! She is really mixing it up with some of the more average pro men, in the run she is mixing it with the best male runners, and that’s scarey.  When girls like myself race her, me personally I don’t have her in my race, it’s just the other woman I am racing.

Obviously you are a fan of the events run by Challenge :) What other Challenge events have you done around the world? Why do you find them so enjoyable and which races would you recommend to our readers?

I have raced a lot of them including the Half Challenge in Kraichgau Germany, Challenge Wanaka NZ, Challenge Copenhagen Denmark and one in France. I would definitely recommend all of them, they all have that amazing atmosphere and they all are fabulously run events!

 

So what’s next for you? Which races have you lined up for the rest of 2012 and will you be competing at the Hawaii Ironman this year?

 

Next for me is a big few weeks, I have had one week easy since Roth and feel great again. Brett (coach) has me racing Alpe Dhuez long distance where we finish by riding the 110km up Alpe Dhuez. The run is at 2000 metres for the final 20 km leg, it hurts. Did I mention we actually ride there from Switzerland which is around 180km then we also ride home after the race!!!...Crazy No not really, it gets you fit!

Two weeks later on the 14^th August I race the beautiful Challenge Copenhagen right in the middle of the city. I can’t wait for that one! Then I am off to the USA to race Rev3 Cedar Point full ironman distance, and finally back home to Australia!

This year my coach and I decided not to race Hawaii. I needed a mental break from it more than anything! Next year it will be my goal to get a top 5 there!

Thanks Bec, good luck for the rest of the year and we look forward to catching up with you again!

No worries x

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This is it. Day 2 of a 12 week journey to Beijing. I've had 2 weeks 'off' since Cairns: a few spin classes with my wife, some yoga, a little from column a and a little from column b... no set plan. It has been good to reset the mind. Although I worry it has triggered a primal part of my brain. The part that would normally respond to the shorter days with less sunshine and warmth. The part that says "hibernate"... "eat more, stop moving and get some natural insulation around the middle"... It is going to take some killer motivational-carrots to dangle in front of me. The question is, what are they going to be?

Ok, so racing for Australia is quite inspiring. So plan A: keep this in mind. Ask myself how does an Australian representative train and then do it. But that will fade when the air is cold, it's dark and I am trying to convince myself that I can't think of anything better to do than jump in a swimming pool. So I think I need to build up a bank of plan B, C, D, etc so that when one fails there is a vault full of others that can quickly be withdrawn and used.

One that is working at the moment came to me last night. I was knocking out session 1, step 1 to Beijing - 2 hours on the bike. I was on the windtrainer and had Kung Fu panda playing. I had never seen it before, but something Po (THE panda voiced by Jack Black) said struck me...

 

"He was so deadly, in fact, that his enemies would go blind from over-exposure to pure awesomeness!"

When I heard this it reminded me of hearing Pete Jacobs talk in Cairns. He was such an easy-going guy, but at the same time was professional and driven to succeed in all aspects of the sport. When he spoke, it was clear that he took the time to learn from each opportunity that arose; from the people he spoke to, from books, from races, from injuries... He spoke of his constant search for improving his technique, in his running, placement of his foot, in his swimming, hand entry, catch, his search to constantly evolve his ability to be more efficient and more effective. Yet he also spoke of listening to his body, doing what feels right on the day rather than locking himself too much into a pre-set plan. He commented that some days he would get in the pool and after a kilometer might get out if he's "just not feeling it". Ok, so that is probably not great advice for me as I don't have the swim base and ability that he does. Plus I would be tempted to use that as an excuse. But the rest was relevant. So I will remember Pete Jacobs when I feel like pulling the doona back over my head in the mornings. I will remember what a true professional acts like. I will remember that if I'm not smiling (for the most part anyway) then something needs to change. 

So, 2 days in, 100% completion rate so far! A ride and a swim. And a Kung-fu panda in my vault of motivation. A good start to the week all-round really. 

http://scott-thewhippet.blogspot.com/

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Hi guys,

I trust that you are well.

This is just a quick update to fill you all in on my latest movements.

I was meant to be racing this past weekend in Lubbock, Texas, but after the
Eagleman 70.3 a couple weeks ago my body just didn't want to get going. My
achilles is still giving me a bit of grief and I seem to have picked up a
throat infection that I havent been able to shake for 2 weeks now. In the
middle of last week I made the executive decision to come back home to New
Zealand for a few weeks to try and get on top of achilles and charge the
batteries to full before attacking my Kona Build up.

It was a tough decision to make. In a way I am regretting missing out on a
few important races but deep down I know this was the smart move to make.
Kona is the big goal and you only have one body, so you better look after
it!

I hope that you can understand my decision making process. If you would like
to discuss it further please do not hesitate to give me a call or drop me an
email.

Kind regards

Terenzo