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Where triathlon meets real talk. Hosted by two seasoned triathletes Lockie Jones and Lleyton Wall, this podcast takes a deep dive into the controversies, challenges, and triumphs of the triathlete world.
00;00;05;27 - 00;00;09;27
Speaker
She goes in front would help the younger.
00;00;09;29 - 00;00;11;09
Speaker
Of courage.
00;00;11;11 - 00;00;20;08
Speaker
Unbelievable. There's nothing but. Racer man. World championship title.
00;00;20;11 - 00;00;44;29
Speaker
And here we are. Welcome back to the podcast. This is the unfunded pod with what is this? Episode nine. So nine. Season two nine season two of the unfunded podcast here with your host, Lockie Jones, professional triathlete. He was my good friend Layton Wall, also a professional trial fleet. Oh, that was touchy. That was that was some. They sounded like there was an asterisk over that one.
00;00;45;01 - 00;01;09;08
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, I do triathlon. Don't know how professional it is. I do it sometimes. It's a hobby. Sometimes it's a job. Yeah, yeah. Anyway, sometimes it's a punishment. Apologies for for food for the last couple of weeks. I think we've had one episode come out in the last three weeks, but we have been flat out. Layton's been away in China.
00;01;09;10 - 00;01;33;17
Speaker
We had racing last week that were both heavily getting ready for. So yes, we are podcast hosts, but we are also athletes. And yeah, like the way life we are life life doers. Life doers. Yeah, we participate in life as well. Yeah, yeah. Sometimes it, sometimes it gets the better of us and yeah, we just couldn't make it into the studio a couple times, so apologies for that.
00;01;33;19 - 00;01;54;05
Speaker
But thank you very much for the support. Over the last couple of weeks, we've had quite a few people reach out, whether it's over socials or even at race events, where we're definitely very much we love it when people come up and sort of say, love the pod, you guys are doing well. Keep it up. Kind of keeps our motivation high to continue doing what we're doing.
00;01;54;06 - 00;02;12;12
Speaker
Yeah, because one day we're going to be known as the podcast dudes. Yeah, well, I feel like we already are. I think we are. I think we won't truly are, especially in the Australian kind of scene. I really they do the podcast. I really needed that podium on the weekend. Just remind just to remind people that I, I am good at triathlon as well.
00;02;12;13 - 00;02;34;20
Speaker
Like, yes, I have the podcast, but I can also do this sport. How is this? So we we had Jack's 18th. Yep. After. And I go meet the parents and I go, oh, you're the one that does the podcast. I'm like, yeah, I did the podcast. Yeah. Jack, Jack dad loves the pod. Every single time. You'll probably listen to this.
00;02;34;22 - 00;02;47;18
Speaker
He probably will shout out to shout out Marcus, shout out to Marcus. He actually said to me the day before the final, he was like, oh, I'll probably see you with your headphones talking and no one, because I heard that podcast. You don't like talking to people on race day, so I'll stay out of your way on race day.
00;02;47;18 - 00;03;05;12
Speaker
I was like, hey, you're a true fan. Yeah, if you remember me saying that. But yes, like we said, busy couple weeks later, do you want to touch on, I think two weeks, two weeks ago, one week ago, you were in China. In China, it's been a pretty hectic week. So we went to China. First race in nearly a year back in China.
00;03;05;13 - 00;03;23;28
Speaker
So I had had to go for a bit of redemption. It wasn't quite the redemption that I wanted, but it was good to be back. Racing had a solid swim and ride and then first one back. It's always it's not a shock to the system, especially in Olympics. Not how I plan to start my season. We can't we can't all be Tim Hellwig.
00;03;23;29 - 00;03;43;16
Speaker
We can't all be. Fortunately not. But yeah, no, it was good to go over there and come back. I mean, it was a lot of travel. I kind of realized that a bit late. It's never easy to get to. It's China's not an easy one. I feel as if anywhere in the world is a 24 hour kind of travel.
00;03;43;17 - 00;04;01;17
Speaker
Even when you go to New Zealand, that's just over the ditch. And that can be a sometimes a full day. Yeah. Exactly. Right. Like it was it's a nine hour flight to get into China, but then fuck around of more flights and getting to the airport up at Brizzi. Yeah, 25 hours door to door. But it was good to go over back to China.
00;04;01;22 - 00;04;23;27
Speaker
They always run a very good event. Yeah. You can't knock how they run an event over in China. Yeah, I think Asia, just Asia in general, the very, very organized. Everything's by procedure. Like they've got a full event schedule and they don't muck around with it. And they, they make it a spectacle, which is pretty cool, even just for a country like, yeah, they've got the bloody performers going on the confetti.
00;04;24;03 - 00;04;43;03
Speaker
They've got it all like, and they do it proper. So like they've got proper live stream like it's on Chinese TV. Yeah. So and that's just Conti. Yeah. That's just a Conti with, you know, 70 guys just running around. And then you fast forward one week later. Oh, runaway Bay, runaway Bay. And it's a championship race, Oceania Championship race.
00;04;43;04 - 00;05;02;22
Speaker
And there's unfortunately nothing probably. And I still don't know what hit. I mean, I took the day before, probably one of the biggest shit shows I've ever experienced. And I don't want to I don't know who was running there. Yeah. We don't want to, like, completely say, because I don't know if it's an Austrian world. Try. I don't actually really, I don't know.
00;05;02;23 - 00;05;20;13
Speaker
But whatever it was, it was a shit show. The fact that the race officials at briefing didn't even really know what was going on, like we were changing rules after the after the brief. It was it was a nightmare. That was pretty cool. There was no fireworks. There was no performers, nothing like nothing. That's what I was about to say.
00;05;20;13 - 00;05;53;00
Speaker
The contrast from racing, in China the week before to then coming back here, it was pole opposites. You feel like you're a professional athlete. And then. And then I felt like I was racing Ribena race, like two seconds from my road. Yeah. Yeah. The local kind of age group champs race. Yeah. Exactly. Right. Yeah. And for such an important quite like for such an important race that it is like you they're obviously looking at what we're doing like in the Oceania chance for World Cup World Series selections.
00;05;53;01 - 00;06;11;11
Speaker
Like it is such an important race. Let's put some hype around it. Like, yeah, I think it's getting worse and worse every year, but I think that was the general consensus from most of the athletes. That's not just us ragging people out. It was the general consensus in that room of athletes. You could have many athletes wearing this.
00;06;11;12 - 00;06;35;22
Speaker
It was probably the size of this podcast studio, and that was about 70 blokes and 50 year old girls. Yeah. And all the staff members and all the staff sat down, not even on a chair on the floor. You know, it's getting bad when every time the head referee answers a question, everyone starts laughing. You know you've lost the room, you've lost control of the room.
00;06;35;25 - 00;06;53;25
Speaker
They're laughing at your response because you've just contradicted something you said five minutes ago. Like it was. It was a nightmare. It was a real nightmare. But how was the racing? How did you go? It was it was a roller coaster of a weekend for me. You did it the hard way. I did it the very hardest of ways.
00;06;53;25 - 00;07;15;29
Speaker
You could have, I think. So I didn't qualify out for my heat, which I thought, oh, yeah, should be able to do that. Yeah. And then had to go into the reptiles. And it was top two in each heat in the reptile. And then the quickest of like the first losers. Yeah. And I got through to the semis by being the fastest.
00;07;16;00 - 00;07;32;11
Speaker
Oh really. Yes. I was the last one to make it into the semis. I never actually asked you how you got in. I just assumed you were in. You made the top two. I never actually asked how you did. No, I was wow, you really made it. It was the skin of my teeth kind of stuff. So it was an absolute roller coaster.
00;07;32;12 - 00;07;51;11
Speaker
Yeah. The weekend. And then in the final, would you come in to be final? Seventh. That's. That's not bad. It was. Yeah. Considering the weekend. Yeah. It was. The B-Final was still very red hot. It was a very red hot. Like like if you looked compared, I think times or whatever. It was quite comparative. Yeah. Really? Yeah.
00;07;51;13 - 00;08;14;27
Speaker
I think that the whole semi finals day was competitive through the whole 32. To be honest. Yeah it was anyone could have been in any final. The hardest part of that weekend was just getting to the semi. Like for me the easiest race of the weekend was the final. Yeah, I even looked at my bike splits and my semi was faster than my my final even even some of the runs like it was.
00;08;14;29 - 00;08;31;12
Speaker
I think the swim was my slowest in the final, like it was tactical. So the hardest part is just getting to the A final. Yeah, exactly. But yeah. You had a good weekend. Yeah. Yeah, it was, it was good. It was good. Can't complain I felt I mean I like did so much work just to get there.
00;08;31;13 - 00;08;48;25
Speaker
Yeah. Feeling great. So yeah preparation paid off. And I got to that final feeling really good. I got to the like the last 400m of the run exactly where I wanted to be. I knew exactly I went into that last 400 thinking, I've won it. Like, this is exactly where I needed to be. I didn't want to be the one on the front.
00;08;48;25 - 00;09;06;25
Speaker
I was so fresh. I cruised the swim. I just came out in the top five or I needed was strong on the bike, made sure I wasn't the one on the front, got to the last 400 and I was like, I know exactly where I need to attack. And for some reason I attacked 200m before. I just got excited, attacked it the wrong time.
00;09;06;26 - 00;09;23;14
Speaker
When were you going to attack? I was going to attack just before the last bend. So? So I attacked on the bend at the far side of the track. Yeah, I was meant to attack on the bend with like 100m to go. Yeah, because I know, realistically, you'd need to try with you when you've got a Luke Schofield Braydon Mercer there and how quick they were at the end.
00;09;23;15 - 00;09;44;14
Speaker
Yeah. You want a surprise, attack them and run around them with about 100m to go. So then there's not much time. Which is exactly what which is exactly what Lucas Caufield did. So that was my goal. That I was right behind him was exactly where I wanted to be and forgot way to excited as came out. Yeah, yeah, came out and thought, yeah, I drop him in the hundred, I can drop him with 300 to go.
00;09;44;16 - 00;10;03;16
Speaker
Yeah. So I went and then yeah, they came around me. I tried to go with them, but when the boys put on the burners after I've just done all out. Yeah, it was hard. But you know, third place. I'll take a third. Got my podium in the Oceania ticked off. It's another year. Ticked off second thirds. Just not the gold.
00;10;03;17 - 00;10;21;19
Speaker
So we'll get there. We'll get there. But it was a good weekend. Good weekend. Good to finish off the domestic season on a bit of a high. Yeah. And then next is I got picked for Chengdu. So I'll do Chengdu World Cup. Yeah hopefully do the relay there. Come home reassess see what Europe has to offer. Hopefully a World Series start.
00;10;21;19 - 00;10;44;01
Speaker
But see that's that's for the higher ups to decide. That would decide my fate. I don't get to choose but it's fun. It's it's the seasons kind of going quick in Oceania. I mean, I haven't really raced it, but very quick. It felt like it was all within a month. Yeah. Like it was all so quick. Usually runaway Bay where racing may I know it's only a couple of weeks.
00;10;44;03 - 00;11;01;06
Speaker
I think we usually do probably race. Or is it April? And it usually is around April. But I think we usually start earlier. It's the it's the Napier and Devonport is usually in that February March. Yeah that's true bit earlier. So it's kind of all a bit more condensed. Yeah. This year. But yeah it's been a bit hectic.
00;11;01;06 - 00;11;25;12
Speaker
But we're back to back to back again. They just tell us where to go and we just go. Yeah exactly. Yeah. We're just the puppets. Yeah. The traveling circus. Exactly. So to set the scene, it starts again this weekend. The unofficial official season opener. Bring out your little recorders and your carpets. We're going to summer. Can. I was trying to be like.
00;11;25;15 - 00;11;31;23
Speaker
I was really no idea where you were going with that. I thought we were going to bring out.
00;11;31;25 - 00;11;46;20
Speaker
Of stuff. I don't know what you think we're going, but. Aladdin, have you been thinking of Aladdin? No, but, like, I don't think Aladdin's in his back. Stan van. It gives me the same vibes. Okay. Least. Yeah. Okay. You know, do you think I thought we were going to bring out a crystal ball and tell the people how the race is going to take.
00;11;46;25 - 00;12;07;11
Speaker
Well, we can do that as well. All right, well, we'll do that. We're heading over to the like I said, the official unofficial season opener. Yeah. I guess whatever you want to call it. Unfortunately, Abu Dhabi was postponed until potentially later in the year. So we're kicking off kicking off the 2026 World Triathlon Championships championship series. Bit of a tongue twister there.
00;12;07;11 - 00;12;30;25
Speaker
But first off, we've got a clash. There is a clash and we're not happy about it. Well, I'm not anyway. I don't know why they do it. So you want a hundred Singapore and some can run the exact same weekend. Why does it need to happen when the organization is all the same? Now? Now that we've all come under the same banner, how have they not figured out the schedule?
00;12;30;25 - 00;12;55;22
Speaker
Why are we still putting races like this? I get the Ironman versus the T100 versus the WTS because they're separate companies and they want to battle and you know, whatever. That's that's that's fine. Not very good for the sport probably. But there are at least different races. I still feel different races, but we've got the exact same people who should be racing the World Series, racing the T100.
00;12;55;23 - 00;13;16;18
Speaker
Yeah, and the exact same athletes. We've got Maddie Hauser, we've got Hayden. While both in T 106 Sam Dickinson. Yeah. Where they could be in summer. Can. Exactly right. I don't get why. If they're under the same banner they haven't figured out. You know, we can shift to the weekend after. And I think that's the biggest thing. It's because we're all under the same banner now.
00;13;16;19 - 00;13;41;06
Speaker
We're all one organization. It's all under the professional triathlon or world triathlon. It's all one. No. Yeah, yeah. Whoever owns it now. Yeah, I actually we still haven't heard the announcement or we haven't anyway. But it's I just don't understand. Like calendar. Calendar fragmentation should be like the key focus to how can we spread attention for all year round.
00;13;41;07 - 00;14;05;04
Speaker
Exactly right. So if I have a World Series and then I have to try and figure out what I've watched the World Series or I watch the T100, I'll probably watch both, but most people won't be going tuning into a whole 48 hours of triathlon. Yeah, it's it's a bit silly. Your girlfriends and wives are going to be pretty upset with you if it's all weekend on the couch watching triathlon.
00;14;05;05 - 00;14;28;20
Speaker
Yeah, exactly. Right. You're going to be in the doghouse. Yeah. And you just split it up a little bit. So why can't we have a World Series on one weekend, a T100 on the next, a World Cup the weekend after it? It makes sense to do that. Then we have eyes on the sport the whole year round. The whole month of, you know, May or April could be packed out with the best racers and the best athletes going to the best races.
00;14;28;21 - 00;14;47;16
Speaker
Yeah, they're obviously going to pick and choose what they want to do. You can't raise every weekend, but unless you hate them, wild, unless you hate them wild. But a lot of very good athletes will be at every single race. Yeah. You know, we're not going to have a diluted field of like the the World Series this weekend.
00;14;47;18 - 00;15;07;28
Speaker
I don't think it has a world champion in it. They said, oh, sorry, in the men in the men because there's T100. Yeah. That same weekend. Yeah. For the men. Yes. Yeah. The women. Yes. It's stacked. Yeah. The women's field is still very stacked. But yes, on the men's side, if we're talking men's, it's very much a there's some still very, very good advice.
00;15;07;29 - 00;15;26;06
Speaker
Yes. But we haven't got the Hayden was the drawcard the Alex and Alex obviously not doing Singapore either. But we haven't got Maddy Houser like we still haven't got the real real full stats. Feel like we are seeing it in the women's. Yeah. But yeah, I, I just, I just think we can put big headline events like this.
00;15;26;11 - 00;15;52;03
Speaker
We can do it on separate weekends. Exactly right. I don't think it worked last year. So I think they should learn from that. I don't I don't think having them on the same weekend work works. No, I didn't like it anyway. But like I, I understand the fact of having a double header, on the same weekend in the same location because as a, as a spectacle at that location, I think it brings a lot of eyes like the crowds there.
00;15;52;03 - 00;16;10;20
Speaker
I think it would I personally, I go away. Jack Woodberry I don't know, because I think we saw it in Wollongong, like when you've got the men's race on the Saturday, say the women's race is on the Sunday, or you've got a mixed team relay, like if it's a two day event, do we really need to add in a third day?
00;16;10;21 - 00;16;25;12
Speaker
Like if it's three days of racing, say it's on the Gold Coast here and it's three days of racing, we've got the T100 and then we've got the men's and women's race, and then we've got a mixed team relay. All the men's and women's are split over two days. Are you going to go drive down to Burley for all three days?
00;16;25;13 - 00;16;42;07
Speaker
No, I'd probably watch the men's and women's WTS because we like that more. Yeah, but three days. I don't think anybody's going down for all three days. They're going to pick and choose I agree. So you're splitting attention then. If it's over two days like fraid you last year it was men's and women's on one day and then T100 the next.
00;16;42;08 - 00;16;55;29
Speaker
Still think you're splitting the day before? I still think you're going to have people that aren't as invested as us too. They're going to go, what do I want to watch? $200 because I'm not going all the way down there to find a park, be on my feet for five hours while I'm watching all this racing. I'm going to do it once.
00;16;55;29 - 00;17;16;17
Speaker
I'm not doing it twice. Exactly. So putting attention, that's my only that's my only kind of, I guess, quarrel with it is I think you are having you are forcing to split attention there. Yeah. And diluting the maximum amount of eyes you can get on the sport. Yeah. That's just the business man image. Yeah. Big business boner. Yeah.
00;17;16;20 - 00;17;36;21
Speaker
But yeah, I 100%. I don't know if this is helping the sport. There's probably going to be people with more arguments that will argue why it is helping grow the sport, but in my opinion, I think it's splitting attention. I think we're splitting, the big names, being able to race on both. Yeah, headline events and especially in the other.
00;17;36;23 - 00;18;03;14
Speaker
The crossover is so big, like we have all of our short course athletes racing the longer distance. I don't know why. I think it's the cash pure. Yeah, it has to be I think I think that's the only reason I think they get paid pretty well in the day 100. And hopefully that that translates trickles down. And you know, I think I think when we're under all the one organization, I think that will start to trickle down and for lower.
00;18;03;15 - 00;18;25;22
Speaker
But anyway that's our that's our input. Hopefully we take it or leave it. Yeah. Maybe they'll listen because they listened with our commentator picks and did. It is the first weekend we get to hear Belinda Granger and Belinda. Yeah, it's going to be exciting. I think it's going to be good. Hopefully, hopefully they're listening to this. I know that Belinda said she wants our expert advice.
00;18;25;23 - 00;18;41;25
Speaker
So our picks, we could just start throwing some haymakers out there and I think everyone wants our picks. None wanted our picks this morning. Is she not Stanford? Yep. Wow. What did your picks? Yeah. I don't know why they're asking for your picks. They should not be asking for your picks. Let's take a latent picks with a pinch of salt.
00;18;42;02 - 00;18;59;25
Speaker
By the way, because I brought I brought a few things to his attention just before this. And he went, oh, yeah, yeah, you're right. I just go there in the news. I very much they seem good. I'm very much a assess the course, like what has happened in previous years, who's kind of doing well. I like to into the nitty gritty.
00;18;59;26 - 00;19;19;07
Speaker
Layton's very much a gut feeling kind of guy. I scroll down the start list, I go, yeah, who gives me the tingle? Yeah, you give me a five and and I usually go from top to bottom as well. So that'll be my number one scroll past. And if I've missed you already, you're gone. Oh no. Oh what. He's racing.
00;19;19;08 - 00;19;39;10
Speaker
Do you never know. Miguel Hidalgo was racing because Brazil's right at the top and I didn't see him. Oh yeah. Okay. And that that is why when we were doing the tri suit thing back at the start of last year, you were wearing a lot. No, but like we said, WTS salmon and we're going to have new commentators on board this year.
00;19;39;11 - 00;20;01;09
Speaker
It previously Salman Khan has been a World Cup. So I think almost since 2023 it's been a World Cup. It's the first World Series, that first World Series. And again, like this is Salman Khan. Do do it very well. They do it professional. They've got a great set up. It's in a little bit of a I won't really say complex, but it's almost like specifically built for triathlon racing.
00;20;01;09 - 00;20;30;11
Speaker
I can't remember if it was for they do challenge Salman Khan there. Yeah. So it is a great, great venue. Very like we've said, very flat. The obviously flat swim, it's just in a man made like almost like a kayaking, like a regatta center, almost like a regatta center kind of thing. It's one of those ones where like anybody that anybody that does open water swimming might understand what I'm saying here, but it almost feels heavy, like you're swimming in the water.
00;20;30;11 - 00;20;46;28
Speaker
And it's like, I don't know, is that because it's fresh water? Yeah, yeah, it's obviously not. Salt water was buoyant, but yeah, almost like when I raced there in 2023 and I was like, I feel like I'm struggling just to stay on top of the water here. Like. And it's not great when you're water. It's dense water. It's hard to get through its thick.
00;20;47;01 - 00;21;00;02
Speaker
It's not, but maybe that was just my arms on the day because I remember Mark Devey when I raised him. He didn't seem to have a problem with it, but they were off the front. Yeah, two minutes in front of me. I think that that was not a good day for me. Maybe it was just your arms.
00;21;00;03 - 00;21;21;19
Speaker
It probably was just my arms, but, Yeah. Fast. Like swim. It's a very flat bike course, a little bit technical. They try to add in some technical aspects, but it's like Abu Dhabi trying to add in technical aspects there. It's very hard on a massive highway, on a massive highway like it is. It is tricky. You do some sort of up into the car park sections of the hotels.
00;21;21;22 - 00;21;44;18
Speaker
However there such big driveways, such big hotels, the technical sections are it's not the streets of Europe. Yeah. You know, you're not you're not going through cobbles and no, you're not you know, it's not Calvary sort of going like a technical unpredictable course like that. And a flat fast run. Yeah. And if it's anything like it was when I was there, hot.
00;21;44;20 - 00;22;05;18
Speaker
It is hot. It it should be pretty hot so fast. Course it's going to be pure power. Yeah. I think the common misconception with it is that it's going to be a running race, which I've predicted. See, I went for the running race and then I look back on the world World Cups of all being race there, all as you said.
00;22;05;19 - 00;22;24;21
Speaker
Yeah, little five, but you don't think that they're going to stick at the start. No, because it's a massive 40 man pack. But it just doesn't get working on that course. It's almost because and they just look at each other I don't know if it's like it's with the and like I said, it's it's a very flat like swim.
00;22;24;21 - 00;22;45;03
Speaker
But it does seem to string out so much like with that two lap swim course every time I've done it, it seems to. And when you've got big hitters like we're doing, we do. We've got you're going to have a Georgia Taylor Brown, you're going to have a Cassandra Grant. You got, the anchor, the Italian Surigao Negroni.
00;22;45;05 - 00;23;08;19
Speaker
Yeah. And then on the men's you got a Diego, you've got Chase McQueen, Mark staple, Mark Davey. Like. Yeah, it's very good. We've got some fish here. But Henry, Greg, Enzo Croce, Arnie like we've got. Oh my God, the men's is stacked with fish. But you know what I mean. That was that funny? It was. You're just calling all the men fish.
00;23;08;26 - 00;23;26;10
Speaker
Yes. There's so many fish there on the list. The fish, they're just freak swimmers. So, like, you've got so many of them, and then so many of them can also ride a bike tremendously well. So I think we are going to see personally and I really hope that it happens because again, we love breakaways makes it more exciting.
00;23;26;10 - 00;23;47;14
Speaker
But I think it's going to be a common misconception that this is just going to be a flat run race like Abu Dhabi is. I don't I don't think it is when you haven't we haven't got a Hayden Wild here that's going to or that's we don't have any of those big gun cyclists that are going to bring it back, especially when you have a big pack of runners looking at each other.
00;23;47;17 - 00;24;13;05
Speaker
Yeah. Like with like I guess maybe some lesser runners up the road that can still run. Yeah. Realistically, I just don't see like who are the big runners? Like, I don't see Cantero, I don't see Hugo Milner, Jack Willis, you know, Da Smith, Maxine Huber, Musburger, the fast Frenchie. I don't see them all rallying and going, let's get, let's get again, like the likes of a Henry Graf.
00;24;13;06 - 00;24;34;24
Speaker
Like, those boys are going to be flying at the front. So I don't know. That's that's that's my pick. I don't personally think, we're going to see a big group come together. I think we're going to see 5 to 10, both in the men and women, 5 to 10 off the front. And then you're going to see a very big chase pack, probably two big chase backs, I guess another war of attrition run, see if they can survive the heat.
00;24;34;26 - 00;24;56;12
Speaker
And that's that's where we'll come down to next. It'll be can those because it is an Olympic distance. So this weekend is it's a 1500 meter swim 40 K bike and a 10-K run that 10-K run in the heat. We saw it I think it was in the race I did back in 2023. We saw Conor Bentley win a crop coat, the Hungarian come second.
00;24;56;12 - 00;25;16;04
Speaker
And then you saw David Quintero run from the chase pack into third. So it's a long enough 10-K where you are going to see people in the Chase pack run up, and it looks like it gets hotter. Well, you can testify, because it's such a concrete kind of jungle. It radiates up off the, I guess, the concrete in the water.
00;25;16;05 - 00;25;36;29
Speaker
Yeah. So that just makes it more harsh. It was just like when I was there. It was just one of those, like, unbearable desert heats, like, it's it's just dry and hot, and it's like you can't escape it like it is really. So we're going to see some people, some of the Europeans that are coming out of those winter times, unless they've done the training for it, they might struggle.
00;25;37;01 - 00;26;01;03
Speaker
I mean, I've got the weather up. How good it is with is Becky Stanley weather, 28 degrees on the Saturday and Sunday it's 30. It's around 28 to 30 degrees. That's hot. That's hot for a European coming out of winter, especially if you're a Brit. Like we said, we spoke to some of the Brits. They haven't they haven't seen even dry weather for quite a while.
00;26;01;03 - 00;26;23;25
Speaker
So this is going to be hot and dry. Yeah. Because there's a we've got, we've got a pretty big British contingent over here, the women's as well. Okay. How do we think it's going to shape out for the picks. I'm going to dig out my my genie magic crystal ball here. I think we're going to have in the women even even you look you look at the women.
00;26;23;25 - 00;26;51;26
Speaker
You got Victoria Lopez, Taylor Spivey, you've got a Beth Potter live. Matthias. Jasper. Look at Tilly. Anima. George. Taylor Brown. Bianca. Sarah. Sarojini. Laura Lindemann, like some absolute Cassandra Green. I'm Nina. Like, we've got some. I'm thinking, like the swimmers. Oh, you're swimmers like that. How is that not a 5 to 10 person breakaway? When you've got, then you've got to have a Jess full of good Taylor Spivey live.
00;26;51;26 - 00;27;11;16
Speaker
Matthias George Brown like inventory Lopez. Those girls who are also really, really good riders. I'm thinking that's that's the breakaway. They're one of those people in those names that I just said, that's going to be a 5 to 10 person breakaway. The rest are going to be rolling around looking each other, not knowing what to do. I don't think they're going to trying to catch they're going to be rolling around.
00;27;11;17 - 00;27;35;23
Speaker
They're going to have like 90s on the front. And I also think the same in the men, which is kind of why I've picked like a Cassandra Grant, Georgia Taylor Brown, Taylor Spivey, they're my picks. Yeah, that's that's probably I would agree. I don't really have much to add to be honest. Sorry. That is because you told me how the race had gone in previous years.
00;27;35;24 - 00;27;54;07
Speaker
And I think back to it and I go, yeah, I've picked the exact wrong people. I'm really hoping they sent you the people who are. Yeah, yeah, yeah. So you can't change it. You'd already sent me because you'd done your gut feeling picks. You sent it to me and I went, he's not looked at this properly. And I also the only reason I didn't pick Beth Potter because Beth Pot is also a great swimmer as well.
00;27;54;08 - 00;28;10;18
Speaker
Definitely a front pack. She's been injured, been injured, and she also had a bit of a slow run at the start of last season as well. So I don't know if she maybe is a bit of a slow start, slow start up, build into the season, build into the season kind of girl. Yeah, she might not. She might come out and surprise me and make me look like an idiot.
00;28;10;18 - 00;28;23;03
Speaker
But she was slow to the start last year. Don't know if that's just coming off the big 2024 Olympic season, and she was a bit slow to start the 2025 season. Who knows. But I did hear that she had been injured and.
00;28;23;04 - 00;28;26;05
Speaker
Had a bit of, you know, up and down start to the year training.
00;28;26;06 - 00;28;30;00
Speaker
Did she did you find that out after you'd picked her to come second on the weekend? Yeah.
00;28;30;01 - 00;28;30;16
Speaker
Exactly.
00;28;30;16 - 00;28;36;18
Speaker
Right. Another year of late. Well, not doing his race, but I did not pick.
00;28;36;20 - 00;28;38;12
Speaker
Gwen Jorgensen who's on the start.
00;28;38;12 - 00;28;59;15
Speaker
Line again. So proud of you for that. I know I saw it, and I really wanted to. Just to piss me off. Yeah, just to annoy you and everyone else. Because she's going to be five minutes down off the line. Yeah. I wonder. Okay, here we go. Odds on know Gwen Jorgensen's name being mentioned more or less than five times or less.
00;28;59;15 - 00;29;15;22
Speaker
Less than five times. We haven't got we haven't got all the old man comments. His name, I don't know, but I don't I don't I don't want to name and shame. We've got two new great commentators. So we're going to call it as they see it. Yeah, I've got to call it based on their biased opinions that they have.
00;29;15;25 - 00;29;30;27
Speaker
Anyway, that's my pick. Cassandra broke ground for the win. George Taylor Brown second, Taylor Spivey third. I think they're going to have a big breakaway with a few of those other names that I listed before, and then these are going to be the three. They're going to run away to the win. I don't think Lisa Tosh is going to be in that park.
00;29;30;28 - 00;29;52;13
Speaker
Leona Perry out any of the other Germans you'll hear. I don't think they are. So yeah, that's my pick. Lane. Well, what's your pick? I picked this obviously last night when you said, yo quick top three for this weekend. So it put me under pressure and I went Cassandra. Her 10-K the other day was rapid. She's pretty good.
00;29;52;14 - 00;30;14;26
Speaker
And now Beth Potter. Yep. Because she's historically a very good tank runner. And then Lisa still not a bad pick. Still not a bad pick. They're not that rogue in the women's I mean three world champions just there. So yeah I mean it's her world champion. Yep. She was 2023 or 4. Oh okay. Three 323 three. Yeah you're right.
00;30;14;27 - 00;30;30;29
Speaker
Three world champions right there. So it's kind of hard to go past them anyway. I'm just trying to go off and I really, really hope everything that I've just said because I've really preached it. I was thinking Georgia Taylor Brown. I had a gut feeling that she was in for a really good one, especially off the back of racing a bit longer.
00;30;30;29 - 00;30;51;11
Speaker
I feel as if this year she's going to do something pretty special and just over overall strength. Yeah, like she's good across the board all through like. And I feel as if that bike dominance now like those Brits are so strong on the bike getting away. Yeah. And I think her longer training has made her run better. That's just my opinion for the rest of the season.
00;30;51;12 - 00;31;09;27
Speaker
Yeah, well well done. Anyway, onto the men. See, I scroll straight past Miguel. Yeah. Oh, I can't believe as soon as I didn't say that, I quickly locked in Miguel just because I was like, he's an idiot and he's not saying this. I also, the only thing that worries me about Miguel is that when he needed to make the front pack last year in Wollongong, he didn't.
00;31;09;28 - 00;31;31;07
Speaker
It was the one. He didn't make the front pack, so he did slip up. And Wollongong, however, you haven't got a muddy hawser absolutely gunning that. You got Shona in there. You do. Yeah. Croce ani Piquet. You've even got the crop co you've got marked of a, you've got Henry Graf, you've got Charles Piquet, Max staple, Hugo Milner.
00;31;31;10 - 00;31;52;14
Speaker
Sorry, Michael GA also a great Suma Hojo. You got Kenji. Nina. Honestly, there are so many good swimmers in this field. It is quite ridiculous. Only thing with that Diogo Moya freak swimmer. The only thing with this, when you've got so, so many good swimmers in one field, they could slow each other down. It's the only thing. Might not break it up.
00;31;52;14 - 00;32;13;04
Speaker
No, and it will, it might. They might just settle down into a massive line. And they're all kind of coming out within 30s of each other. Too many gap fillers. Yeah, exactly. Right. To many gap fillers. That's the only thing that's going to unravel. This being a swim bike, breakaway feel as if that really I mean, you do have a top echelon set of swimmers.
00;32;13;12 - 00;32;31;19
Speaker
I think someone like Matt Houser really breaks up early with his pure get out, pure speed. Yeah. And those guys that can go with him for that pure speed that is about seven of them. Yeah. I don't know whether it's going to be get out as quick. Nobody screams here like that. Pure urgency to get out. Yeah yeah.
00;32;31;19 - 00;32;52;13
Speaker
So it would be interesting. You're not going to see a Vasco or a Miguel really urgent to get away. No, they're they're happy enough to sit in a 50 man park and run. Yeah. I just really hope to go max out front pack, because I've basically built my picks around Miguel being in that front pack with a heap of guys who are, again, great athletes, but just not Miguel Hidalgo running style.
00;32;52;14 - 00;33;08;06
Speaker
Yeah. Okay. But that's my pick. I got Miguel Hidalgo for the win. Henry Graf, he's going to be in that breakaway of about 5 to 10 guys. And just based off what he did last year, I think he's going to be really good, really fit. He'll be able to hold on to a second. And then I got Hugo Milner in third.
00;33;08;06 - 00;33;27;28
Speaker
I think after what we saw in Hayakawa, how fast he ran in that at another five K on. Yeah, I think he's a ten gay guy. He's a 10-K guy. Yeah. So I went purely off because as I said, I was rushed last night. Get your picks in. I didn't really look, I just can't believe this picture I picked.
00;33;27;28 - 00;33;48;20
Speaker
You go Milner for the win. Not a bad pick. Not a bad pick. Dark horse pick. I'd say for a win. My thinking of this was 10-K. I'm picking 10-K, guys. That's why I went the second spot. I went John read second purely because of that T100 10-K. Exactly right. Gotcha. And good for the reels. And then Tom Richard rogue rogue ours.
00;33;48;26 - 00;34;06;23
Speaker
But I just thought great runner I saw him I saw him there. And I was like he could do something great runner but randomly great runner. But rogue. Very rogue. Rogue. What's your dark horse? You got one dark horse. I think my whole pics of dark horses, they are. You actually do usually pick dark horses. But my dark horse pick for this one.
00;34;06;24 - 00;34;31;11
Speaker
Who's that? Women's Tilly Anima. Okay, I'm a big, big, big until the Anima. She had a great race here. I want to say in 2020, 2025, one is in 2025. Could have been 2024. She crashed on the bike, but she was in that breakaway of I think that about 5 or 6 girls, she crashed and they still had one of the fastest runs of the day getting into a top five.
00;34;31;13 - 00;34;48;11
Speaker
So she's my dark horse. She's a freak swimmer. I think she'll probably be out in the top three out of the water. If she can hang on to that bike park, she'll be able to run into a I think my dark horse is going to be and I've called her is like the up and comer last year two demand.
00;34;48;18 - 00;35;12;25
Speaker
She didn't have a very good year last year, but I think she's going to be back. She's a great runner, great runner. I think she will probably run through okay. I think she'll she won't quite make that front pack, but then I think she'll gallop her way. Look, I disagree with that one because I think there's going to be quite a few other girls like a laser Leoni Perry, other girls that are going to run probably quicker than her, but you pick you.
00;35;12;25 - 00;35;32;03
Speaker
And then my male dark horse. Here we go, Jack Willis. Jack. Oh, we've heard dangerous things about Jack Willis. I've heard if he can get off and run. Yeah, he's going to be running very quick. Jack Willis is the one that we've heard from multiple sources that he just needs to put one together. If there's a year that it happens it's this year.
00;35;32;03 - 00;35;50;11
Speaker
Yeah. So and he's just a legend of a guy. Legend of a guy. So we want to we really want to see Jack Willis do well. Yeah that's one he was on kind of my mind when I was doing my picks. I'm going to say my dark horse is going to be the person who I battled to who I wanted to pick.
00;35;50;16 - 00;36;11;11
Speaker
Croce Ani, Johnny Alessio Croce, Ani. I think if it was, if it's not Henry Graf, it's Croce Ani. We know he can swim. He's going to be in the front park. He's dabbled in the long course. He's strong on the bike. I think he's going to get off in that breakaway. And we saw him run with Matt Hauser for 56K of the Wollongong final last year, so he can run 10-K.
00;36;11;17 - 00;36;31;08
Speaker
So I think Croce, if it's not Henry Graf on the podium, it's Croce Ani on the podium. Are we sleeping on Tim Hellwig? I think we are. You know, we haven't mentioned Olly Conway, David Kentaro or Tim Hellwig, like the three boys that just dominated in the previous two World Cups. We're sleeping on massively but there is just so many good guys there.
00;36;31;11 - 00;36;51;00
Speaker
Stacked field yeah, there are so many things, there's so many different ways that this could all play out. But yeah, again, we've just picked our dark horses in our picks and we've not even mentioned. Yeah. Cantero. Conway. Tim Hellwig, you've even got Song of Lehmann. It is a very good start to the year. Vasco. We've not even really mentioned him for a podium.
00;36;51;00 - 00;37;14;03
Speaker
Like so many good guys. The two Batista brothers. Yeah, yeah. It's interesting that, like, it's such good field and top, like your big three aren't even there. We almost said that and we don't know if. Is it going to be another year like last year where it's like, do we even need, you know, a Hayden and Alex racing it to make it exciting?
00;37;14;03 - 00;37;31;07
Speaker
No, I don't think we do. Because like we said, we've got these guys coming through who are now willing to really put the pressure on the top guys like in that swim bike like yeah, bring back Hauser. He obviously adds to that breakaway contingent. Yeah. Hayden and Alex. Yeah, they're kind of just in there. But like they obviously are exciting to watch run through.
00;37;31;08 - 00;37;50;08
Speaker
We're not and we're not even talking about our top Frenchman either. Dorian Konex hasn't come back yet Leo Perger is Pierre Le Call coming back to shore. Course like Taylor Reed there is. You don't know. Okay, well, he's still great, but I mean. Yeah, yeah. And your short course career on a fourth at the Olympics. Yeah. Not a bad spot to finish.
00;37;50;10 - 00;38;17;02
Speaker
Commend you for that. But, still so many Frenchies that aren't there. And then the Americans we just saw, now just the American fast American runner broke his collarbone. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He goes, who cares? Who cares? Who cares? No race. No, that's not race. That's, Oh, Morgan. Peter. Morgan. Peterson. Oh, no. Well, yeah, there's another one for such a stacked field.
00;38;17;02 - 00;38;36;20
Speaker
And to still be missing so many quality athletes like it just shows how good this could be. The Olympic cycle starts, people start coming back. This is just going to get more and more exciting. Yeah, it's good stuff. We're keen. We'll be turning the TV on Will and Belinda, and I believe the first is the first race free on trial art.
00;38;36;22 - 00;38;56;02
Speaker
I'm not sure if it's the first race at the World Cups. They had the first two World Cups for free on trial on live, so unfortunately we are still hiding behind a paywall. That's okay, but that's okay. We'll pay for William. Belinda will. Have you paid for William? Belinda? No. So you want my login details? Yes. Thank you very much.
00;38;56;04 - 00;39;14;06
Speaker
Will pay for Will and Belinda like you were. Pay for Will and Belinda. I think you can come over to my dad's, actually. Yeah, well. Exactly right. We always go to your house. Watch. Fair enough. May as well. Everyone. Everyone, if you want to come to my house just says the unfunded podcast ADM. And I'll send you my address.
00;39;14;08 - 00;39;39;19
Speaker
Alrighty. Well, that's our thoughts for the World Triathlon Series starting in Simon can this weekend and the T 100 WTS clash and battle. We'll be back next week. Yeah, we'll give you the full wrap up. We'll be. We'll be watching, won't we? Yes, we will be watching. Leighton's not watch the first two World Cup. So he's he's going to come and he's gonna show him I'll sit down for two hours.
00;39;39;21 - 00;40;02;19
Speaker
Four hours and glue my eyes to the screen. Exactly. We're going to analyze it. We will have a little spread out for us. She'll bring out a spread. You boys want some spring rolls? Yes, absolutely we do. All right, well, that's another another episode done. Big weekend of racing ahead. And yeah, plenty of questions already with some people looking to knock down some early doors.
00;40;02;19 - 00;40;09;22
Speaker
Exactly. Points up for grabs. Early points. We'll be back after Samarkand and we'll break it all down with you properly then. Thanks for listening.