What happened since my latest check-in?

As I mentioned in my previous post (which you can read here), I spent the last three weeks in Sursee, Switzerland before heading to the World Cup in Huatulco, Mexico. I wanted to get in some additional training before continuing my hunt for the Olympic qualification.

This period was incredible, as I had the opportunity to work with amazing people and with a new coaching staff. Nico Montavon (whom I will refer to as Nico) is the coach of some of the most promising Swiss triathlon stars, such as Cathia Schaer and Simon Westermann, and he also coaches Jamie Riddle.

Nico represents the coaching school of the Athlete First methodology. He places a great emphasis on his athletes’ mental preparation, recognizing that it’s not just our bodies on the line during a race. The team’s atmosphere is characterized by great energy and a shared commitment to continuous improvement. Personally, this is precisely what I needed. I’ve learned and improved more during these past few weeks under Nico’s tutelage than I have in years. Overall, I felt confident heading into Mexico.

Mexico and prerace feelings

I arrived in Huatulco 5 days prior to the race. The main reason behind going to the hosting city this early is the time shift, which was 8 hours in this case compared to the Central European Time. Fortunately, because of my previous travels to Chile, Japan, and New Zealand, I was able to develop a routine to shift my body as early as the first two days of my arrival. Despite that, I need a few days to get familiar with the atmosphere, to make my body get used to the weather/circumstances, and to do the last couple of training before tip-off. This acclimatization period is a must for me in these overseas travels.

I was about to go to bed around 8 pm local time on the first night when the ground started shaking. I’ve never experienced anything like that and fortunately, It ended before I realized that it was an earthquake. The second it ended, my phone alerted me to find shelter, because a 4.8 earthquake hit the area. It turned out, that this part of Mexico it’s a totally normal thing and this is part of their life. After gathering my thoughts and making my family sure that I am okay, I went to sleep. But it wasn’t over. The day after my race, another 5.0 earthquake struck Huatulco. It was nighttime already; I was sleeping and of course, I woke up. It’s not possible to describe the feeling. I’ve stayed with my awesome friend Julia Kekkonen from Finland; we had a great time together and it’s always better to share an experience with other like-minded athletes. Back when the start list got released, I knew I will have to rely on my swimming to create a few groups and create a stable first group. Despite the level of the Triathlon race, if the field is full of great runners who are less good in the water, the best chance for me is to swim well and push on the bike as hard as possible. That was the plan, sounds great, what’s hard about it? Spoiler alert: the plan seemed too simple and for me, the worst scenario happened regarding the strategy. But this is part of the learning curve, and I just can’t build on the same thing, because races are different, period.

Without exaggeration, and backed by research, this race was one of the hottest in the past few years and one of the most extreme races in the history of the Olympic Triathlon. The air temperature reached around 35°C, with the water temperature just below 32°C. The humidity levels were also extremely high. The organizers even sent an email stating that they were closely monitoring the weather and that there was a possibility of delaying the race by a whole day. This would not have been ideal, as I would have missed my flight or connections. However, after evaluating the situation, the LOC decided not to postpone the race. Now, all that was left was to compete.

Race Day

Although I was the 36th to choose the starting place, I felt strong during the swim, but I would be lying if I didn’t tell you that it was a struggle to swim through the boiling water. I came out in 5th place, right behind the Mexican Rueda Santos and the Japanese Yuka Sato. After T1, the 8-12 of us had a small gap, so I did my part and changed wheels with a few of the top athletes in the world, including the living legend Katie Zaferes. It’s always intimidating to race with such big names, but every second I spend competing with them makes me better. This is an amazing chance to learn and improve.

The circumstances were tough for everyone and after creating a 25-second gap on the first lap, the chasers were full of dope bikers, and they caught us. From this point of the race, my goal was to maintain a stable position in the group to be able to respond to a potential breakaway. As the laps passed, the group grow to 42 people, so the run decided. I was first off the bike and had a decent T2, but others had more firepower. I picked a fast pace that I could maintain but the heat and humidity were pressuring my body. I don’t even remember what my thoughts were during the run.

Although I finished 30th, this was the first ever elite race in my life that I didn’t finish last from my bike group. I was able to surpass a few athletes, and this is something that never happened before. It was the hardest race of my life, but my run shined compared to myself and that is something I’ve been struggling with in the past years. I’ve collected all the Qualification points I could, and this is what matters the most.

Final Thoughts

After the race, I headed back to Switzerland to train another week before the European Games. The necessary work has been done so I travelled to Krakow with a clear and confident mind. By the posting of this blog post, the European Games are over and probably most of you know the outcome, but I don’t want to spoil it here, because I want to dedicate a separate post for those races. Oh and also, there is a new interview in the making, stay tuned!

Thank you for taking the time to read this race-summary post. If you don’t want to miss anything fresh here, follow me on Instagram, where I will always share if a new article is up. If you found a mistake or have an idea for the future, please do not hesitate to reach out to me on the given platforms!

Cheers and See Ya next time! :)

Disclaimer: Few of the photos above were taken by World Triathlon and they are the respectful owners.