My thoughts are along the lines of yours. Exciting. If he does it. Will he get hurt training for it or during.
While fast, he can train to the point of injury. My money would be on the durable IM champions who have completed several IMs.
Big fan of the Brownlees and Gomez. Wish them success in IM as it would be good for both IM and ITU This just feels like an Ouch in the making before he gets to the finish line. Would like to wrong here.
I think if Frodo and Alistair show up healthy, Lange will only be a contender for 3rd. Last year there were no uber bikers who also can run, but seems like this year we will have 2 at least. I think it is more likely that Alistair and Frodo come to T2 with Wurf.
Frodo seems to be doing okay, ran 1:12 this weekend but slowed down towards the end prob because of his big lead, we will see for sure in Frankfurt.
I feel like he is racing like an age grouper at this point running the gamut of distances trying to decide which one he likes most
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…except he is racing the Gamut of distances to see which World Titles he can realistically win in order to build a GOAT Palmares…
Ireland isn’t going to give us of an indication of how he’d do in Kona unfortunately.
New slow course and unlikely to be any sort of competition there. Also as mentioned, completely different conditions to hawaii.
Seems an odd move really. He looks like he’s starting to get some short course speed back finally after last years long course inflicted injuries. Would make more sense to target tokyo and tick off 70.3 Gold in Nice on the way.
Still time for a kona attempt in 2021
Poor Tom Bishop or Yee (my guess is Yee makes it over Bishop). One of them likely gets pushed to side for AB to race Tokyo and he’s racing IM’s as the buildup. I don’t know if that’s arrogance or he’s that burned out of giving a flip about ITU; he is 2 time champ so he’s really telling everyone it’s his way.
I guess if he truly tries both events (as I said I think this Tokyo decision could “drag†on til May 2020), we’ll see what specificity allows for. Of course Kona 2019 or even 2020 doesn’t truly matter. That event is every year so he can have some learning years or he may just hate it all together who knows.
Pretty sure that a podium finish in Leeds this weekend earns both brothers their Tokyo slot. GB’s 3rd slot is decided on Leeds and the Tokyo test event (September?) I believe.
Agree with you about Yee being the 3rd - the commentary for Yokohama mentioned that the main group deliberately tried to distance him on the bike because they were so concerned about his run. (shame the same cant be said about his swim though!)
Leeds is not an auto qualifier for any Rio medalists. For JB, AB and Holland they can auto qualify with a top 3 at Tokyo test event. Everyone else had to auto qualify with top 3 Yoko 2019 + Tokyo test event.
It is an race that is factored into the decision of the board that could get you nominated by the board, but it’s not automatic.
…except he is racing the Gamut of distances to see which World Titles he can realistically win in order to build a GOAT Palmares…
Well, if he wants to be GOAT of all triathlon then he needs to go long, he is already arguably GOAT of ITU (I like Gomez but I do think two OGs + two ITU titles > 5 ITU titles + OS), but both Gomez and Jan have better palmares across all distances which means he only has one choice if he wants to be ultimate triathlon GOAT. I think he is struggling with loving ITU while considering his legacy
Ireland isn’t going to give us of an indication of how he’d do in Kona unfortunately.
New slow course and unlikely to be any sort of competition there. Also as mentioned, completely different conditions to hawaii.
Seems an odd move really. He looks like he’s starting to get some short course speed back finally after last years long course inflicted injuries. Would make more sense to target tokyo and tick off 70.3 Gold in Nice on the way.
Still time for a kona attempt in 2021
But what it does give him is…
The only pushback I have with any of this; this isn’t how you win medals or even top spots in Kona. Again I don’t know his specific training, I just see his race calendar and results. But this seemingly half in, half out process seems to me to lack any specificity. Now of course he’s already won 2 Gold’s, so ITU is probaly boring to him now. Again, we don’t even know if he’s committing to Tokyo or not, it seems as if it’s still up in the air. Maybe he does it and maybe he doesn’t.
But of course even doing ITU specific training but racing the IM distance, it’s going to put him in great shape. I just dont think it’s ideal training specificity. But again, racing Kona for handful of years as “learning” is pretty smart. But of course everyone is going to go crazy over the “battle” we’ll see with him in the race, but I’m kinda over here like “pump the brakes” on the actual Kona race day execution and results in the early years. I said the same for Gomez, let him go race Kona, get his ass handed to him the last half of the marathon and learn from it. That’s pretty much what we saw happen, that bike effort likely cooked him just a wee bit + conditions in Kona, etc.
ETA: But again AB is at a point where it doesnt really matter what path he chooses. Kona is a yearly event so he can sorta show up and learn from it with not the ideal training leading into it and then just race again next year. And since he’s already the greatest ITU and double gold medalist, Tokyo result is meaningless other than really the MTR result for him. I mean of course he’d love to do as little as possible and win a 3rd medal, I just dont think he is so concerned about his training leading into Tokyo- IE why he’s even racing an IM.
Why can Lionel not be in peak condition?
Why can Lionel not be in peak condition?
Can you do some Ali videos, please!!!
Texting with Ali now. We are going to try and set something up. Stay tuned
** but both Gomez and Jan have better palmares across all distances //**
I think you are getting ahead of yourself putting Gomez into the same zip code as Frodo. Gomez has done a lot of successful 1/2 ironman, not really any full ones as of yet. Frodo likewise has a lot of great 1/2 distance races to his resume, and many ironman wins, including the big kahuna. To me, Gomez is only a fraction ahead of Ali at ironman distance, just because he has done a couple. Ali has done enough 1/2 to show he is dominant and competitive with anyone on the day too, just not as many as the others…
I like what he is doing, its funny to me that so many get their panties in a bunch because he might choose to do olympic distance and ironman in the same year. It is the same sport, and you dont need a whole year to switch focus from one distance to the other, a few months is plenty. Its how we all did it back in the day when you had to race all distances. And the best guys seemed to still be the best guys, racing all distances within a year. Do folks need some experience moving up, absolutely, but not always. Some of the greats just move over seamlessly, and only way to know is to do…
I guess it’s going to be a pretty good indication if he blows up in Ireland 😀 if he does well at least the Brownlee fan boys will still have something to cling to before he melts down in Kona in October.
Ireland isn’t going to give us of an indication of how he’d do in Kona unfortunately.
New slow course and unlikely to be any sort of competition there. Also as mentioned, completely different conditions to hawaii.
Seems an odd move really. He looks like he’s starting to get some short course speed back finally after last years long course inflicted injuries. Would make more sense to target tokyo and tick off 70.3 Gold in Nice on the way.
Still time for a kona attempt in 2021
Okay so he won’t be doing Kona.
He won’t even win cork. Have you guys seen the start list?
i’m just not sure this is his best play. i love the guy and his style of racing. but given everything, i’m not certain the full distance is his strength. if i were his coach i might suggest he top out at half IM and decide to absolutely own that distance for a while. the full is about patience, sitting in, etc. - he’s shown a problem with that in his 1/2 racing, and it’ll be magnified at the full. at ireland he might just go off the front all day, but that approach won’t work at kona
It seems only in triathlon that you can double or quadruple the distance (say from Olympic) and, we just assume that, the same athlete will be a world beater at the longer race.
It’s not ALWAYS the case. We have a recent example with Javier Gomez. Historically another GOAT that comes to mind is the great Simon Lessing - could never really figure out Full IM racing. Some just don’t have the physiology, the durability or the mind-set for going this long.
On PAPER Ali Brownlee should do very well at a full IM, but strange things do happen beyond, I would say, the 6 - 7 hr mark in an IM that until you are in a race and have been going that hard for that long, you never really know how it’s going to go!
It is the same sport, and you dont need a whole year to switch focus from one distance to the other, a few months is plenty. Its how we all did it back in the day when you had to race all distances.
Except it’s not the same sport anymore. The specificity that is happening in ITU and then in IM is showing that they are now more than ever 2 different sports. But again AB totally can get a pass with either direction cus what’s it matter if he doesnt win…he’s cemented his legacy with the 2 gold’s. And Kona being an every year event, he can have some developing race years. But what I’m pointing out that you don’t get to put your foot in and out and win in either pathway. That’s just how good the competition is he is going to be racing against in 2019 and beyond.
I think you are right about some successful fast short course guys struggle at longer distances. I think u r wrong about Gomez and Lessing though. Lessing struggled after his short course career primarily due to injuries and not a lack of ability at long course…although he might have been poorly suited to Kona.
Gomez has hardly struggled at long course, two World Championship titles, beating Frodeno at Mt. Tremblant and an on fire Kanute at Chatanooga, amongst a tonne of others. Gomez was also second to a phenomenal Currie at Cairns and 11th in Kona on your debut against an incredible field is not horrible. It is exceptionally rare to knock Kona out the park on a first go. I think Gomez may lack the fire for iron distance racing otherwise why house give up the iron distance to go after Olympic gold on a course not suited to him.
It’s not ALWAYS the case. We have a recent example with Javier Gomez. !
Umm you need to go back and look at Javiers results.
Didn’t he do Ironman Cairns and break the course record that was held by Luke McKenzie when he was in his prime?
Javier is a freak.
I don’t know if Ali will go well in a few weeks or not.