I’ve sat on this information for too long (interview was held on July 29th). Since the big race is coming in just 8 days, I figured I’d give you a quick look into Simon Whitfield’s thoughts heading into the Olympics.
Is he is faster triathlete today (vs his 2000 Olympic win in Sydney)?
- Sydney’s Simon could not beat today’s Simon.
- His swim was too weak back then and so was his bike.
- He did an enormous amount of training to make that improvement and this was necessary to keep up with the evolution of the sport.
The course in Beijing
· A strength and fitness course (due to the hills and heat).
· The fittest athlete will win.
· His top end speed has re-surfaced from doing more reps/strength (slower/longer reps).
· The site is 75 minutes out of Beijing so smog, etc., should not be a factor. He cannot do anything about the smog anyway so if it is there he will just have to deal with it.
Race tactics.
- The are 2 team leader spots (Paul Tichelaar and himself).
- Colin Jenkins is there to support both he and Paul.
- They need to be in the lead group coming off the bike.
His overall well-being.
- Things are going well now. His new family (13.5 month old daughter) is challenging but a positive influence.
- Fitness and preparation is there, and he is swimming, biking and running faster.
His DNF in New York.
- He just came off a huge training block.
- Looks at it as just another workout that he pulled the plug on. No big deal.
- Could be a blessing in disguise.
His apparent obsession with Javier Gomez.
- A joke that went a little too far. Contrary to what some might believe, he did not name his daughter after Javier’s mother.
Beijing.
- He is not going to the opening ceremonies. He will be watching from a bike shop in
Victoria and eating Chinese food. He will be leaving for Beijing 5 days before the race (The men’s race is on Monday August 18 at 10 pm Eastern Time and the women race on Sunday August 17 at 10 pm Eastern). - The team is staying in a 2-story mansion 1 km from the race venue.
- Results – will be what they will be. Preparation has been great so what happens, happens.
Check out the new olympic edition bike, shimano pro aerobars and the racing outfit. Click on the picture for one of the most candid athlete blogs out there.
Rog – great tidbits. We’ll be rooting for him for sure and the rest of the CDN Tri team.
Just curious as to why we always see Simon on the road bike instead of a P2 or P3. Does he race on the road bike as well? Great athlete and a cool Canadian!
Simple, the P2 and P3 are pieces of junk…..Just joking.
You might just see Whitfield on a P3 in 2009 because he plans on racing a variety of distances this year, up to the 70.3 distance. Many of these are not draft legal, thus the use of a time trial bike. For the ITU circuit you will notice they are on road bikes and either have shorty bars or no aerobars at all since it is draft legal racing. Not only is it the better way to go (safety, speed in the corners, etc.), but there are rules that restrict aerobar length, etc.
While I love my TT bike, I think I might enjoy riding my road bike (Litespeed Siena) tons more. As you can see with Simon, many pros log a lot of their time on their road rigs (riding with groups, more comfy, etc.).
And you are correct, he is a great athlete and Canadian. On top of that, he is a first class dude too.