Triathlon - Is the olympics a reasonable goal?

Well I was wondering, since Kona is such an intense mental and phyiscal breaking thing, what about the olympics? Is that a reasonable goal? If so how would I go about even starting to qualify? I know with track it was national, and other big races (I wish I had kept racing track)

Well, I can only speak for Canada. Though I will assume it is close to the same. Just work your a$$ off and get really fast. Race locally, untill you are winning most every race. Then go to the next level, I geuse that would be racing around the state. If you are good here, I would assume you would pick up a sponsorship. That will help you when you go to race at nationals and the likes. If you are good there, you will be asked to join the development team. Were you will train with teh olympic team and stuff untill you are better then one of them, then you are in the breach for whatever olympics is upcomming.

Sarah Haskins is from my hometown of St. Louis and went to high school where my brother teaches. She is training for the Olympics. She now lives and trains at the US Olympic Training center in Colorado. She just won the LA Triathlon and I think she won a few other similar big ones this year or placed in the top 3. She is crazy fast an consistently wins or places in the biggest national olympic distance triathlons. I don't know her but I think she was a cross country or track phenom in high school. I imagine that you have to be really strong in a sport and get picked up by a great coach.

I would imagine to begin to think of the olympics you would need to swim 1500m in under 20 minutes, be able to average 24mph or better on the bike for 40k and then run a 10k at a 6 minute mile pace (on average on a typical course).

Sarah Haskins is from my hometown of St. Louis and went to high school where my brother teaches. She is training for the Olympics. She now lives and trains at the US Olympic Training center in Colorado. She just won the LA Triathlon and I think she won a few other similar big ones this year or placed in the top 3. She is crazy fast an consistently wins or places in the biggest national olympic distance triathlons. I don't know her but I think she was a cross country or track phenom in high school. I imagine that you have to be really strong in a sport and get picked up by a great coach.

I would imagine to begin to think of the olympics you would need to swim 1500m in under 20 minutes, be able to average 24mph or better on the bike for 40k and then run a 10k at a 6 minute mile pace (on average on a typical course).

I think you might bump that 24mph up a bit. I'm a fat old guy and I can TT in the 25mph range for a 40k. Guys that are winning the Sate TT champinship are doing 29 mph. TDF riders are plus 30.

In the 2005 LA Triathlon the top MPH on the bike split was 25.8mph. Tim DeBoom was 24.8mph. In the 2005 Chicago Tri the MPH on the bike split was 26.9mph - as I understand it Chicago is a pretty flat and fast course. These results are for male pros.

Can you really average 25mph for 40k? That is very very fast. Comparing triathletes, even pros, to state champion TT results or to pro cyclists is not accurate. A very very strong triathlete biker would probably be dusted by an average pro cyclist. Of course, the biker probably can't swim or run very well.

In the 2005 LA Triathlon the top MPH on the bike split was 25.8mph. Tim DeBoom was 24.8mph. In the 2005 Chicago Tri the MPH on the bike split was 26.9mph - as I understand it Chicago is a pretty flat and fast course. These results are for male pros.

Can you really average 25mph for 40k? That is very very fast. Comparing triathletes, even pros, to state champion TT results or to pro cyclists is not accurate. A very very strong triathlete biker would probably be dusted by an average pro cyclist. Of course, the biker probably can't swim or run very well.


I'm looking to start TT racing as well, really crank up my wattage on the bike, I don't like to feel slow so I'm shooting for the moon

In the 2005 LA Triathlon the top MPH on the bike split was 25.8mph. Tim DeBoom was 24.8mph. In the 2005 Chicago Tri the MPH on the bike split was 26.9mph - as I understand it Chicago is a pretty flat and fast course. These results are for male pros.

Can you really average 25mph for 40k? That is very very fast. Comparing triathletes, even pros, to state champion TT results or to pro cyclists is not accurate. A very very strong triathlete biker would probably be dusted by an average pro cyclist. Of course, the biker probably can't swim or run very well.

Yes I can, and it really isn't that fast, only good for 14th in Masters 45 for the Florida State TT championship. I can see your point doing it in the context of a triathlon would be tougher.

There is a basic track to follow. Olympics is ITU style, so that should be your goal if you want to go to the olympics. The U.S. has an elite U23 circuit that is set up for juniors interested in the olympics to race in that manner against other juniors. Go to USAtriathlon.com and email the juniors guy. Plan three ITU-style U23 races for next year and hopefully qualify for nationals(you'll need an elite classification). From there you can get USAT support, such as training camps paid for. It basically a network you need to get into and once there, USAT has a support system for their athletes.

Also, some people can cross over ITU to non-draft races. But it would seem to me that to want to win AG at Kona and make international ITU leve competition would require very different training and very different mentality.

I just noticed something in your post, you said that you wished you had stayed with Track. I think your track experience may give an insight to whether the Olympics are a realistic goal. If you naturally took to Track, and were winning straight out of the box, and advancing to State competitions, and winning there, that would be an indication that you might have a gift that could be cultivated into an elite level of performance. If you were simply competitive with other kids at local meets, but not blowing everybody's doors off, it doesn't mean you can't reach a high level some day, but it might give you some insight as to whether you have the special physiology that 's necessary to reach a very elite level.

It appears the cart may be well ahead of the horse. Sign up for events that interest you, train hard to prepare,have fun, and see how far it takes you. But realize 99.9% of us are never going to get farther than doing this for our own satisfaction.

I would imagine to begin to think of the olympics you would need to swim 1500m in under 20 minutes, be able to average 24mph or better on the bike for 40k and then run a 10k at a 6 minute mile pace (on average on a typical course).

Actually it's closer to 5 minute mile pace.

...I think your track experience may give an insight to whether the Olympics are a realistic goal...That's a really good point, and here's what he stated in this thread:

http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?p=1898147#post1898147



. . .Remember running is a very different sport than cycling, I'm an ex runner (well getting back into it), I was running a 4'01 mile and a 1'55 half mile....coming to cycling, those numbers didn't and still don't matter.

This would put him among the very elite. The U.S. all-time high school record for boy's mile is 3:53. See link: http://www.trackandfieldnews.com/records/outdoor/men/hs_outdoor_records.html

He's only 8 seconds off the all-time record. Call me skeptical, but if he was really that fast, recruiters from schools like UCLA and Univ. of Oregon would be camped out on his doorstep. He wouldn't be trolling forums asking for advice. He'd be the one giving all of us advice. And he'd have a very legitimate shot at making the Olympic team in track, and wouldn't be wasting time contemplating a triathlon career.

Elvish, is there some kind of concrete proof you can point to to prove me wrong? I'm skeptical, but I'm willing to hear you out.

". . .Remember running is a very different sport than cycling, I'm an ex runner (well getting back into it), I was running a 4'01 mile and a 1'55 half mile....coming to cycling, those numbers didn't and still don't matter"

This is complete horsepoop. If he was a 1:55 halfer then he was probably a 4:01 1500 meter runner. Most 4:01 milers go out close to 1:55 in their first half of the race. Hahahahaahahahaha

Also, yes the top pros probably go sub 32 in the end of an Oly

This is complete horsepoop. If he was a 1:55 halfer then he was probably a 4:01 1500 meter runner. Most 4:01 milers go out close to 1:55 in their first half of the race. Hahahahaahahahaha
And if he was a 4:01 1500 meter runner, he'd be only 23 seconds off the all time record. Still fast enough to get a full ride scholarship to some of the top running schools in the country. But instead of burning up the track at Stanford, UCLA or other top schools, he's here asking questions like this:


How far is an olympic? I'm curious, I only know IM and half IM sprints vary don't they?
from: http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=157918

And then he asks if training for the Olympics is a reasonable goal. :rolleyes:

Hey, guess what? I just learned to drive a Ford Escort - when can I race in the Indy 500?

I'd say 4:01 1500 isn't so absurd. Most who go all the way through college(at any level D1-D3) as a 1500 runner will hit 4:01 with some good coaching and training.

I'd say 4:01 1500 isn't so absurd. Most who go all the way through college(at any level D1-D3) as a 1500 runner will hit 4:01 with some good coaching and training.He's 17 years old, 5'8", 180+ lbs and in this thread here's what he has to say:


. . . and my mile run time at last check (has been a while) was 5'03"(that was 2 years ago thoguh...so I'd bet its at like 7-8 now)

ElvishFrom:http://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php?t=102747
See the inconsistencies? 8 months ago, he was estimating that he was a 7-8 minute miler (and that he ran a 5:03 mile at age 14 :eek: ) , then he says he's done a 4:01 mile (or is it 1500 meters?).

The purpose of this forum is to offer advice to newbies and to discuss our sport. When there is someone who is disingenuous with us, it bothers me because we've taken time to respond in good faith. It began to raise "red flags" with me when I started to recognize his name, and saw an odd pattern of super fast times but lots of newbie-like questions. I'm not saying he's lying, I'm waiting for him to prove his statements. I have nothing to prove because I'm a middle-of-the-pack, middle-age guy and make no claim to being anything else. But I love the sport, study training and technology fanatically, and am always looking to improve - no more, no less.

Whatkind of proof woudl youlike? I had to stop running because I got the hell busted out of me knee sparing.

I was asking how far an olympic distance tri was becasue I want wasn't sure, I need to know how far to train on.

There isn't a damn thing I can say or do to prove to you I was a fast as hell runner, but I was, I'd have you emailmy old coach but he died ina motorcycle accident 2 years ago (I'll see if I can't hunt the linkage)

I know there are some differences, but please allow typos.

I understand if you don't want to help, thats fine. I my best mile was 4'01, I could do it but it normally wasn't worth it...

If there are anything things,let me know...

4:01 mile? As I said earlier, that's only 8 seconds off the all-time high school record. Check the link I posted above. You would have been the regional champ, probably state champ, and maybe even among the top 5 in the nation for that year. Your name would be plastered all over high school track and field websites. Where is it? If not, I call BS.

4:01 mile? As I said earlier, that's only 8 seconds off the all-time high school record. Check the link I posted above. You would have been the regional champ, probably state champ, and maybe even among the top 5 in the nation for that year. Your name would be plastered all over high school track and field websites. Where is it? If not, I call BS.


Did you ever stop to think for just a second it could have not been a meet? I wasn't a mile runner, I was a half miler, and even then it ended short due to knee injury, again if you don't want to believe me thats you

Did you ever stop to think for just a second it could have not been a meet? I wasn't a mile runner, I was a half miler, and even then it ended short due to knee injury, again if you don't want to believe me thats youElvish, check out this link: http://dyestat.com/3rank/5out/dse-final-aug10.htm

In 2004, the fastest high school runner in the USA ran the mile in 4:04 (nearly 4:05). And you claim you beat his time in the mile when that distance wasn't even your specialty?

Also, you didn't answer my question from earlier. How'd you go from being a 5'03" miler to the best high school miler in the US in 8 months? Are you juicing? If so, can you send a little my way :D ?

Anyway, I don't have any more time to post tonight - I gotta jump in my Ferrari to get to my Lear Jet so I can fly down to my Chalet in Switzerland by Saturday. ;)

BTW, you are funny! :D Adios!

Actually it's closer to 5 minute mile pace.

This is the truth. Plus, you better swim 1500 m in < 19 min so that you can draft on the bike at 30 mph instead of 24 by yourself.

Since they Olympics are pros now, maybe it would be easier to start as a pro.

Hey Sprocket Man, I didn't know Elvish was the one claiming to be a 4:01 runner(anyone claiminig it had better be able to back it up). In that case let me address him directly, YOU WERE NOT A 4:01 miler, especially one who was really a half miler.

I know a 4:01 miler who was a half miler, he went 1:49 in the half before he ever went sub 4:04. He was 22, 6'3 and 160 pounds(i.e. he carried 20 pounds less than you and stride is about 12 inches longer or so). Trained about 75 miles a week and hard.

If you didn't run the 4:01 in a competition, then you know what? You didn't run it. Times in any competition need to have a legitimacy, i.e. governing bodies... USAT, USATF. If times are not recognized by those governing bodies, they didn't happen. I have no problem giving you advice. However, my advice if you can indeed run a 4:01 as a 5'8 180 pound person who also runs a 1:55 is to drop 40 pounds, find a good physical therapist and start running again, forget triathlon, you and Alan Webb should be training together.

If we want to accept limiters, you are 5'8" 180, run a 5 minute mile and have done some junior cycling thats good lets give advice... I'd still say drop say 20 pounds(every pound you lose you run approxiamatlely 1-3 seconds faster in a 10 k, also look at the build of the pros they're like most distance runners with about 2 inches more across the shoulders), bike a ton and find a swim coach.

Do you remember the movie about the Olympic bobsled team from Jamaica?

That is MY strategy for going to the Olympics. Move to some little country where I own the only bicycle. A sure thing for making their Olympic cycling team.

So, that's the key: if you want to go to the Olympics, chose your nation carefully.

The olympics are not a realistic goal for 99.99999999999% of the population. You are probably not in the minority. Perhaps you should win a race or two and get back with us.

I think it is important to differentiate between goals and dreams (perhaps this is something I read in the Friel book). Sure, you can dream about competing in the Olympics, but before that is a realistic goal, you probably need some intermediate goals.

okay, lets leave the argument over veracity, and the silly implication that somehow the olympics would be an easier goal than kona behind and go to the meat:

1) ironman champions tend to be runners.

2) olympic triathletes are swimmers. sorry folks, a track background is helpful, an elite swimming background is vital

Check out the elite athlete bios:
http://usatriathlon.org/Elites/elites_athlete_bios_frames.htm

Sheila Taromino: 2 gold medals in swimming
Barb Linquist: Stanford swimming, Olympic Trialist for swimming
Susan Williams, Julie Swail, Jessi Stensland...all swimmers who learned to run

I swam at a masters program for a number of years that seemed to be a revolving door for famous pros. The ITU folks tended to swim circles around the Long Course folks. (Not a rule, a select few have become great swimmers such as Chris McCormick).

In this country, the WOMEN going to the olys run 34min 10Ks in a triathlon. The female olympic gold medalist in the last olympics came from behind with a 33. The men are running something closer to a 31-2. In a draft legal tri, however, how fast you run doesn't matter much if you don't get into the lead pack on the bike.

In the past, the US develpment camps have selected good swimmers and taught them to run, rather than the other way around. I'Check out the under-23 draft legal stuff. Or go out, win some races, and put up a resume on the development website. The top 5 athletes in each sex are invited to the OTC for a 3 week development camp. For the men, all 5 were sub 2hrs. For the women, I believe the cut-off ended up around 2:18.

Olympic distance training is hard on your body too because a lot of speedwork is needed. I know many of the aforementioned athletes have been plagued by injuries.

Following your comments, doesn't a draft legal triathlon make the bike leg almost meaningless? As you point out if you're not in the lead group out of the water you're toast. And even if you're a strong cyclist, you're not getting away solo off the front, absent a very hilly course. And if you try to go off the front on the bike, you're using so much more effort than the pack, you'd die on the run.

Tangent question, are team tactics (ala the Tour de France) legal in draft legal triathlons?

Following your comments, doesn't a draft legal triathlon make the bike leg almost meaningless? As you point out if you're not in the lead group out of the water you're toast. And even if you're a strong cyclist, you're not getting away solo off the front, absent a very hilly course. And if you try to go off the front on the bike, you're using so much more effort than the pack, you'd die on the run.

Tangent question, are team tactics (ala the Tour de France) legal in draft legal triathlons?

I would think that if you can get some teamates that are fairly close in the swim, you could be ridiculous in the bike leg. Just think, if you trained alot together, you would be so good at running a paceline. It would be nuts.

I like the choose your country idea, I am going to go to the carribean and start a ski team. The problem with this is I think there is a minimum to qualify for the olympics, regardles of standards in the country.

Following your comments, doesn't a draft legal triathlon make the bike leg almost meaningless? As you point out if you're not in the lead group out of the water you're toast. And even if you're a strong cyclist, you're not getting away solo off the front, absent a very hilly course. And if you try to go off the front on the bike, you're using so much more effort than the pack, you'd die on the run.

Tangent question, are team tactics (ala the Tour de France) legal in draft legal triathlons?
Its been done before, but its not common. In fact, that is essentially what happened with the American women in the 2004 Olympics. Sheila Taromino and Barb Linquist weren't feeling hot so they put everything into Susan Williams. Apparently as they pulled into transition Taromino told the girls to "go get some medals." The dark horse Susan ended up with a bronze for the US, despite a crash. :)

I've heard that in recent ITU racing, there has been a push for hilly courses to break up the pack on the bike to make the race a tri rather than a swim-run. That was the reason for the ridiculous hill on the bike lap at the olympics.

ITU races are not traithlons. they are group baths, with a group ride to warm the legs after the bath, then the most insane 10k you could imagine.

I would also like to express my shock and awe at the claimed times of this individual. I was a rather sub-par walk-on at a D-1 school my freshman year. I went 1:56 for the half and 4:25 for the mile in team time trials. I wasn't fast enough to make it into the meets because of my slow times.

If he claims that he was a 800m guy who ran 1:55, but was simultaneously a 4:01 MILER, he's full of it. There is a gigantic, huge, immense gap between the type of speed necessary to run a 1:55 800m and a 4:01 1600m/mile. We're talking 1:52 or less for the 800m. More like 1:49-50.

ITU races are not traithlons. they are group baths, with a group ride to warm the legs after the bath, then the most insane 10k you could imagine.

:D :D :D :)

haha. no kidding. I just want to eek out 40min 10K. those women are cracking 35!!!! the cookies i'm eating as i cram for my physio exam are not helping...

ITU races are not traithlons. they are group baths, with a group ride to warm the legs after the bath, then the most insane 10k you could imagine.

That is the perfect description. I'm still smiling.

ITU races are not traithlons. they are group baths, with a group ride to warm the legs after the bath, then the most insane 10k you could imagine.Good description. I read in a triathlon publication recently that some members of teams competing in ITU races were referring to supporting members as "domestiques". :( ITU rules are based on compromise - they couldn't effectively enforce draft rules so they did away with it altogether. Really sad.

I would also like to express my shock and awe at the claimed times of this individual. I was a rather sub-par walk-on at a D-1 school my freshman year. I went 1:56 for the half and 4:25 for the mile in team time trials. I wasn't fast enough to make it into the meets because of my slow times.

If he claims that he was a 800m guy who ran 1:55, but was simultaneously a 4:01 MILER, he's full of it. There is a gigantic, huge, immense gap between the type of speed necessary to run a 1:55 800m and a 4:01 1600m/mile. We're talking 1:52 or less for the 800m. More like 1:49-50.

Probably true since he has gone silent......... ;) He also had a recent post about buying his first bike & buying a diving wetsuit. Sounds like a future olympian to me !

I ran a 1 hour , 55 minute Marathon. around my block 500 times!

Well I was wondering, since Kona is such an intense mental and phyiscal breaking thing, what about the olympics? Is that a reasonable goal? If so how would I go about even starting to qualify? I know with track it was national, and other big races (I wish I had kept racing track) wtf, you somehow decided Kona is too hard so you think it would be easier to go to the Olympics instead?!?! :o

Doing an Ironman is not hard at all, I know. Did one earlier this year, got to the end and was so amazed at how easy it was I wondered why I hadn't it years earlier (and the answer... I'm extremely lazy unfortunately :rolleyes: ). Now doing Kona isn't massively different from doing any other Ironman if you are willing to wait and take your chances in the lottery. However even if you are talking about qualifying for Ironman even that isn't so insanely hard, and certainly when compared to the Olympics isn't even on the same level (unless you mean to qualify as a pro, well then perhaps..... ).

Basically if you think Ironman is too tough for you to ever imagine yourself doing it then stop right now thinking about going to the Olympics, because getting to the Olympics would be very damn tough. The best advise I'd give to you then is just to go out and have fun doing a few sprint triathlons and build yourself up. Then perhaps sometime in the future you might then be able to take another fresh look at yourself as to if you are to go on higher with this.


Whatkind of proof woudl youlike? I had to stop running because I got the hell busted out of me knee sparing. How the heck do you think you could do triathlons at a high level with a busted knee which prevents you from running as you claim you could before? Or did the fact that a triathlon finishes with a run somehow fail to register with you?


I understand if you don't want to help, thats fine. I my best mile was 4'01, I could do it but it normally wasn't worth it... We do want to help, and you can see some of our comments are aimed towards that. However we wouldn't ever want a person to come on here spouting of a bunch of blatant lies. Remember a lot of us here live and breath this stuff, so it is a piece of cake for us to tell when something isn't quite right.

Amused to see you said "it normally wasn't worth it" in reference to running a 4:01 mile, that is getting very close to running sub 4 minute mile. I'd give an arm and a leg to run a sub 4 minute mile (ah, bad choice of body parts perhaps. Not going to be running sub 4 without them, so I'd give up my little finger instead!), and most people if they are running 4:01 would be so tempted by the chance of going sub 4 minutes they would be trying damn hard to do that and not saying it "wasn't worth it". Put simply you have been in many ways you haven't been showing the attitude/manner of someone who has ran at the level you claimed, admittedly this by it self isn't enough to condem you to hell. But it is enough to hammer in a few more nails into your coffin (and you are already in a coffin from some of your other statements...).

@ shawneespeed - "99.99999999999% of us can't compete at olympic level" -
perhaps a little exageration - you are assuming the population of the earth is over 10 trillion just to get 1 person in the olympics!