The Triathlete Hour

Welcome to our last episode of Triathlete Hour before we take a late summer break—but don’t worry we’re planning to be back with new episodes at the end of the month…

And for this episode we have an exciting guest: Leanda Cave, the four-time world champion — at almost every distance — talks to us about how even in retirement she’s considering one more distance world title, Ultraman. And she tells us how her first Ultraman went two weeks ago.

We also talk about how she got started in the sport, how she made a living and found her way, and what it was like becoming the first athlete to win the 70.3 and Ironman world titles in the same year!

This episode was brought to you by Hammerhead. Now, Triathlete Hour listeners get exclusive, limited time offer—a free heart rate monitor with the purchase of a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Visit hammerhead.io, put both products in your cart, and use promo code TRIATHLETEHOUR at checkout to get yours today.

This week we have a deep and thought-provoking episode with Siri Lindley. The world champion talks to us about how to create the life you want for yourself and how to chase dreams that seem impossible, even how to turn something like living through leukemia into a positive in your life.

First, before all that, some quick news: Today is our host, Kelly O'Mara's, last day at Triathlete. So we’ll have one more short episode for you next week and then we’ll be taking a break in August, but don’t worry we hope to be back with some Triathlete Hour episodes after that break

And to get us started Sid joins us for one more Sid Talks, where we dissect all things Commonwealth Games, two-day Kona, and all the women’s sports news.

RELATED: Siri Lindley Wins Her Greatest Battle—Recovery

This week we’re doing a quick recap from the ground in Edmonton on the exciting brand new PTO Canada Tour race. Sid gives us the behind-the-scenes scoop, and we debate what was good, what could be improved, and what we’d like to see in the future. Then we break down the Collins Cup picks and try to explain the appeal of the Commonwealth Games.

We’ll be back next week with a regular interview, stay tuned.

RELATED: Is the 100K the Perfect Race Distance?

Welcome to the Triathlete Hour. This week’s episode is one I think will hit home for a lot of triathletes. We’re talking to mental health researcher and ultra runner and triathlete herself, Jill Colangelo.

Jill started studying the link between mental health and endurance sports after she found herself overtrained, with no answers for what drives a regular athlete to train themselves to that point. What she found may sound familiar to many of you.

And now, more recently, she’s been talking to other triathletes who have been diagnosed with ADHD or autism, and the overlapping symptoms of both, and trying to understand why there is so much overlap with triathlon and what triathlon can do to be more welcoming to neurodiverse athletes.

It’s a fascinating episode, with lots of good information. But first Sid & I preview the PTO’s Canada Open this week and take bets on who will make it with all of their equipment intact. (One quick note: After we recorded it was announced that Olympic gold medalist Alistair Brownlee would be joining the start list.) We’ll have all the previews later this week, but you can see all the action live on Outside Watch.

Read some of Jill's articles here:

Losing Focus? Feeling Grumpy? You Might Be Overtrained

Stress Can Cancel Out Your Fitness

What's It Like to Be A Triathlete with Autism Spectrum Disorder or ADHD?

Jill Colangelo is a writer and researcher of mental health and ultra endurance sport. She has a BA and ALM in psychology and is a former triathlete and ultramarathoner. 

This episode was brought to you by Hammerhead. Now, Triathlete Hour listeners get exclusive, limited time offer—a free heart rate monitor with the purchase of a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Visit hammerhead.io, put both products in your cart, and use promo code TRIATHLETEHOUR at checkout to get yours today.

This week’s episode is a chat with Jackie Hering, the 70.3 North American champ, has been on a roll lately—and she says the turning point actually came doing Zwift races during the early parts of the pandemic.

Jackie shares how she thinks of her 11-year career in different parts, how one of those parts was changing her training and balance after having two kids, and how she has no interest in doing an Ironman again. Plus, as the snowshoe person of the year, she’s well equipped to give us all the details on how to snowshoe.

This week’s episode is brought to you by the AIRWAAV Endurance Performance Mouthpiece, which can open your airway by up to 25% for improved breathing. As a partner of USA Triathlon, AIRWAAV is offering Triathlete Hour listeners 15% off with code TH15.

Welcome to the Roth edition of the Triathlete Hour. Sid and I are bringing this episode to you from the Roth expo the morning after the race. We talk about if the legendary event lives up to the hype, if it’s full back post-COVID, and then we dissect the pro races: Anne’s win, Jan’s DNF, Magnus Ditlev’s near record.

Thanks to Sid and thanks to the entire Roth team for giving us the chance to experience this event. More for our readers up on the site:

Does Challenge Roth Live Up to the Hype?

This week, we’ve got a quick preview of the race in Roth this Sunday: world champion v. world champion. And then we’re talking to another world champ, the legend Nicola Spirig.

Nicola talks to us from her home in Switzerland, as she nears the end of her final season and retirement. She tells us about what her goals have been in this final year, which of her five Olympics was her favorite, and how she actually never intended to be a pro triathlete for this long.

The Swiss star and Olympic gold medalist started triathlon when she was just a kid; her dad coached her for 15 years and she ultimately won 6 European championships. What will she do now? And what does training look like when she’s all done with triathlon?

Check out the video from On Running looking back on her three decades: Nicola's Spirit

This week’s episode is brought to you by the AIRWAAV Endurance Performance Mouthpiece, which can open your airway by up to 25% for improved breathing. As a partner of USA Triathlon, AIRWAAV is offering Triathlete Hour listeners 15% off with code TH15.

On this week’s episode of the Triathlete Hour we’re talking with the legendary Karen Smyers, who is still the only woman to win the ITU (now World Triathlon) world title and Kona in the same year—just five weeks apart back in 1995.

She also overcame a string of bad luck in the late '90s: a storm window that fell and sliced her hamstring, getting hit by an 18-wheeler, being diagnosed with thyroid cancer, and shattering her collarbone. But it didn’t stop her from getting to the first-ever Olympic Trials. She also talks to us about her more recent challenges with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and what she’s learned over the years.

Most importably, she wouldn’t change any of it.

And first a quick chat with Sid as we both prepare for Challenge Roth & the infamous Roth after-party—and we try to dissect the whirlwind season of races.

Check out Karen's TEDx talk she mentions: Racing While Female

This episode was brought to you by Hammerhead. Now, Triathlete Hour listeners get exclusive, limited time offer—a free heart rate monitor with the purchase of a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Visit hammerhead.io, put both products in your cart, and use promo code TRIATHLETEHOUR at checkout to get yours today.

This week's guest may be familiar. Rudy Garcia Tolson's been to the Paralympics five times and won five medals, and he was the first double-above the knee amputee to complete an Ironman.

Today we get to know Rudy better and understand why when he was five years old he decided to have his legs amputated just so he could finally get out of the hospital and live his life. And he tells us know many prosthetics he went through as a kid and how many celebrities he’s met over the years. Then, he shares his one piece of advice for everyone dreaming big.

This week's episode is brought to you by the AIRWAAV Endurance Performance Mouthpiece, which can open your airway by up to 25% for improved breathing. As a partner of USA Triathlon, AIRWAAV is offering Triathlete Hour listeners 15% off with code TH15.

This week we’re talking to Nikki Bartlett, fresh off her win at Marbella 70.3. She tells us how when she started out it took her hours to make it through a swim at training camp—but she was determined to become a pro triathlete, and how she’s found happiness and loves what she does now.

But first, Sid Talks is back with the most important question: Laura Phillips 8:18 at Ironman Hamburg, Kat Mathews 7:31 and Kristian’s Blummenfelt’s 6:45 at the Sub 7/Sub8 project — what was the most impressive performance this weekend? And what do we want to see in the future?

RELATED:

Yes, Iron-Distance 'Records' Were Broken, But Was Sub7/8 A Success?

What's the Ironman World Record? It's Complicated

This episode was brought to you by Hammerhead. Now, Triathlete Hour listeners get exclusive, limited time offer—a free heart rate monitor with the purchase of a Hammerhead Karoo 2. Visit hammerhead.io, put both products in your cart, and use promo code TRIATHLETEHOUR at checkout to get yours today.