Following the ITU circuit having a few buddies who race in it… I was impressed this weekend by an 18th place showing by Simon Whitfield. Why? Well, he pulled the 3rd and eventually the 2nd up to the first pack.
After getting dropped hard by the local roadies last weekend, I respect how hard that is to do. I get the feeling that he’s focusing on some non-drafting races this year (I believe he’s racing the Columbia Half Iron in May). I hope he does well.
He is racing the Muskoka Long Course as well.
didn’t I see his name for the Auburn Int. Tri ex-World Toughest??
My bad Francois,
That was the race I was referring to.
No surprise. Simon Whitfield is one of the best triathletes in the world. There is this general impression, amongst certain groups, that the top ITU triathletes are not that strong on the bike. With respect, I think these people are mistaken.
Fleck
Good point Fleck,
I agree… (and i’m armchair quaterbacking here because they could all kick my butt) But in the ITU races… There are some 2 dimensional triathletes. However, I think you’re right that they are often all painted with the same brush.
One of my buddies told me that one of the commentators on the online coverage was saying that Simon looked out of shape… That made me chuckle.
Maybe with some key cases but I know of two nations whose youth development policy is to identify key abilities in swimming and running only. Disapointing. Unfortuantley with the old guard being phased out (or moving to long course) the only form of triathlon some kids will know will be the drafting variety.
You are right. The top coaches who are looking to recruit the future top triathlon talent are looking for specific athletes: Great Age-Group swimmers who can also run!
You can start doing bigger volume training at a younger age in swimming without the dangers of overloading a still growing body.
Having good swim technique and fitness at an early age, WILL make that athlete a better triathlete in the future. No triathlon is won on the swim, but more than a few races are lost on the swim.
Not ALL of these great age-group swimmers can run. Think Ian Thorpe: The big guy, with the huge feet, can likley not even run around the block! There is however, some age-group swimmers who can also run. These are the kids you want to introduce to triathlon, because running strong and well is critical to being successful in the sport.
As for cycling: Cyclists tend to mature slightly later in life. so getting a kid on his bike in his late teens does not set them back at all. Cycling is also somewhat talent nuetral and triathlon has proven that to be the case. You can take many athletes and with the right coaching, a good chunk of time, and the right equipment turn them in to good to great triathlon cyclists.
So, look for the kids that are standouts on the school swim team and cross-country team. Keep them in the varsity swim and running programs and then in the summers introduce them to cycling. In a few years, you will have a well rounded triathlete who could be a local contender.
Fleck
about the ITU guys on the bike, it’s true that the very best are also good bikers…Lessing, Macca, Whitfield, Marceau, Walton (although he doesn’t race ITU anymore, or hasn’t in a while) etc…all ride very very well…
but there is also a big bunch of lesser known ITU guys that are not that good on a bike and they are truly swimmer-runnners
Agreed.
By being good to great cyclist in the context of ITU style racing, you can control your destiny more and increase your ability to be right there when the key things in the race start to happen. If not, then you are left to wait for things to happen and really are not in control of the situation.
You see this with the names you mentioned being much more consistant in their ITU results over the course of time, than the strong swimmer/runners.
Fleck
And we saw which ones were really strong on the bike in Athens, with an appropriate bike course (at least those that could qualify, as most qualifying races took place on less challenging bike courses unfortunately).
Marceau, Riederer and Hamish are all three great cyclists and they were the ones making things happen back in August.
Not a lot of people remember this, but simon has finished top 3 at alcatraz and was the top male finisher (second overall) at lifetime fitness, so has some solid non-drafting pedigree. He should do some serious damage at the 1/2 ironman distance, that dude can swim and bike, but he can really run.
As for other ITU bike studs, look at greg bennett’s splits from St anthony’s on the weekend, 55min bike followed by a low 32 run-I’d say that he is quite well rounded.
Maybe with some key cases but I know of two nations whose youth development policy is to identify key abilities in swimming and running only. Disapointing.
If I were asked to draft a bunch of unknowns, train them for 4 years and then go to the Oympics, I would look for proven swimming speed (eg, Div1 All American or better) and running potential (either proven, or have them do some 400’s) first; and take cycling as a passing concern – a tiebreaker at best.
An athlete than can swim fast and run fast can learn to ride fast (provided they are not too small). An athlete that can cycle fast might not ever get good enough at the other two.
Read Lew K’s “Sharks, Cheetahs and Lunch” article archived on this site somewhere. Swimmers are sharks; runners are cheetahs; cyclists are lunch because the other two will eat them alive.
Looks like you’re hard to impress, a gold medal at the Olympics just won’t do…
Rick,
Good post. I am not sure why the orginal poster that it was “disapointing” that triathletes were not being recruited on cycling talent. The fact is the next generation of great triathletes will be outstanding age-group swimmers who have the ability to run well. You can teach/train them to ride the bike later. But on a bike obsessed tri forum, this may come across as blasphemous!
Fleck
" Looks like you’re hard to impress, a gold medal at the Olympics just won’t do… "
I’m a “what have you done lately?” type of guy… Like take Sergio for example. He was third in IMAZ… What happened to the other 2 places? Must have been the coach’s fault! 
(Sergio… good job man)
P.S. I met Simon at a race a few years back and he is all class. Many people don’t know, but he takes a lot of time out of his off season to talk to school kids to get them active… Not necessarily just triathlons… Just something other than PlayStations and TV. So I definitely pull for him when I see him racing.
Wow,
The Germans were impressive. 3rd and 4th. They were using a “new” pedal system, like Pyro-Platforms or so. Anybody has any specifics?
I doubt it helped them with the placing, but it seems to have worked well for them. I only tried the Pyros once in a duathlon, but was wearing quite cushioned shoes. Never tried them with nowaday racing flats.
Anyone have more info on what they were using?
Also, Julie Swail placed best American (Go Julie!). Her weakness is still the run, but she for sure can swim and her bike has progressed quite nicely.