Triathlon Tribe Interview with Ash Bailie

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Ash Bailie made a big splash at the recent ITU World Championships in Beijing, with an outstanding silver medal in the Junior Elite Girls race. This performance capped off a hectic year for the nineteen year-old athlete, who moved from Bunbury, WA to Wollongaong, NSW last January to train under renowned coach Jamie Turner.

While Beijing was the last race Ash will compete in as a junior, we suspect that this is not the last we will hear from Ash Bailie!

Congratulations on your recent silver medal at the World Junior Championships in Beijing! How was your preparation for Beijing? Were you expecting such a spectacular result?

My preparation for Beijing was relatively smooth. In June I flew to Vitoria, Spain where the NSWIS and VIS squad are based. Unfortunately, when I first got to Spain I had a small hip injury and this saw me miss out on three weeks of running. Fortunately the injury cleared and I was back into it in no time.  Spain was a great training environment and along with the other Junior Girls in the team, Europe gave us the perfect weather and races for our preparation.

When asked what I expected from the race, I actually never really went in with a specific goal. I never even looked at the start list to work out who I was racing against. Not that I did not care, it was a simple case of the only person I was racing that day was myself. On the day I wanted to make sure that I had a strong swim, ride and run and whatever the outcome,  I would be happy with it. I have worked so hard for this day and made many sacrifices to get here so I knew that if I put in 100% I would be rewarded. The race turned out perfectly and although I tried so hard to get that gold medal, I am still so happy with my silver and I am never, ever going to forget the journey and the experience of my 2011 Triathlon season. 

You have spent a lot of time travelling and racing overseas this year. Tell us about your experiences abroad. Have you enjoyed it and what have been the key lessons you can take away?

Being overseas has been such a huge journey! It has been so great but it has also been a real mixture of emotions. Being in a foreign country, training has been exciting, with the different cultures, scenery and experiences. It has also been really hard with small things such as food, living outside of a suitcase for many months and the language barriers. I think I have been so lucky though and I have enjoyed every minute of it. I am not going to forget this experience and journey of my first year abroad.

My biggest lesson that I have learnt is that knowing a little bit of Spanish and French goes a long way, always appreciate what people do for you and that being organised is crucial when you are overseas!

You come from an amazingly successful triathlon family, with your brother, sister and mum all having represented Australia in Triathlon. What was it like growing up in family like this? Does it help inspire you in your training to see other members of your family doing so well?

When I am asked why I took up triathlons my answer is simple... You could not be a Bailie and not do triathlons!! Growing up in a family like this was amazing. It was awesome to be amongst a family that is fit and always on the go. One of my biggest inspirations to take triathlons to the elite level was in actual fact my brother, Ryan. I suppose I have always admired him and when he was in Wollongong doing so well, it was hard to be so far away from him. I suppose I am his most adoring fan J It also made the move from WA to NSW a lot easier to know that he would be on the other side to meet me... 

You have moved away from your home town of Bunbury, WA to live in Wollongong and train under a new coach. Was it difficult to move away from home? How are you enjoying the east coast?

I have never struggled with my move from Bunbury to Wollongong. The move was made easy knowing that my brother would be on the other side to meet me. Of course I miss my family and friends back in WA, but this has given me an opportunity to create an independent path of my own and grow up a little bit! Wollongong is absolutely beautiful and the location is amazing because it is so close to everything. Sydney is a little up the road and having to fly to races are not such an epic journey like WA.

What about the transition from competing in local and school sport events to elite juniors? Have you found it a big jump to make?

It was a big jump from local and school sport events to elite juniors. It is a completely different bag of potato chips all together! When I first did elite juniors I was well off the pace and I did not realise how much training and effort that the top juniors put in. I used to train 2 times a day and I thought that was a lot. Now that I am one of those juniors I realise that it is not easy. We train 3 times a day every day and put many hard hours into the sport. The jump may be large, but if you love the sport, it is not impossible.

By medalling at the World Championships, you carried on a grand tradition of Australian Triathlon success. What are goals for the future in the sport?

Beijing was officially my last race as a junior athlete and I am now in U23. This means that I am now racing the big Olympic Distance. My current goal in triathlon is to have a successful transition into this new category and be a tough opponent over this distance. I never look too far ahead... Just one small step at a time....

What’s next for Ash Bailie? Are you heading back to Australia soon and any races on the horizon?

Right now I am in Orlando, Florida, training for the World Cup in Huatulco, Mexico. I am training in Orlando to get used to the heat and humidity.  This race will be my first World Cup and also my last race before I get to head home back to Bunbury after 9 months of living the “Gypsy” life. 

Thanks for chatting to us Ash! We wish you every success for the coming season and look forward to watching your transition to a successful Under 23 athlete.