# The Norwegians DOMINATE The Ironman World Championships.

An episode of [The Triathlon Hour](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1595443343), 14 Sep 2025, 1 h 29 min.

Audio: https://www.buzzsprout.com/2640942/episodes/19698026-the-norwegians-dominate-the-ironman-world-championships.mp3

What a week it’s been. What a race the Ironman World Champs ended up being, surpassing all our wildest expectations for how crazy it would play out. The Norwegians dominated and we break that down as well as ALL the action, stories and talking points from the day. We try to bring you some laughs and strong opinions along the way as well. Again, a huge shout out to all of you for making this the best week in the podcast’s short history. We can’t express enough how grateful we are. Precision: Use the code TTH25 to get 15% off your first order with Precision at Precision Fuel & Hydration or subscribe to the Patreon and access the link that will save you 20% on every order, not just your first Patreon Pillar: Use the code TTH to get 15% off your first order with Pillar Performance at Pillar Performance or use The Feed for North American customers Patreon: We put a lot of time & energy into bringing you this podcast every week and have done for 4 years now. If you appreciate what we do, we would love your support and you can do so for less than the cost of a coffee per week on Patreon - Patreon link

## Transcript

[0:27] SPEAKER_00: Wow, pretenders, I do not know where to start.
[0:31] SPEAKER_00: The race we just witnessed here at the Iron Man World Championships in Nice, the men's edition, is one of the craziest days of triathlon I've personally been a part of or witnessed in my life.
[0:41] SPEAKER_00: It was just, it was just insane.
[0:43] SPEAKER_00: And there's so much to talk about.
[0:45] SPEAKER_00: Probably nothing more than the champion Kaspar Stoyners, that's exactly how you say his name, don't come at me, and the Norwegians being back and dominating on a world stage.
[0:55] SPEAKER_00: I'm here, as always, by the two best co-hosts in the triathlon podcast world, the 20-time Iron Man 70.3 champ, although he's not quite as good as some triathletes who have eight gold medals whose names we won't mention because it still triggers Sam a little bit after the day.
[1:12] SPEAKER_00: Sam Appleton.
[1:14] SPEAKER_01: Stoines, baby.
[1:16] SPEAKER_01: Good to be here.
[1:17] SPEAKER_00: And the most opinionated man in triathlon, the fastest, sorry, third fastest swimmer in triathlon, Greg Harper.
[1:24] SPEAKER_02: Thanks for having me, Jack.
[1:25] SPEAKER_02: Norwegian method is back.
[1:27] SPEAKER_00: It's just back in the biggest way possible, isn't it?
[1:30] SPEAKER_00: Like they were on another level, those three Norwegians.
[1:32] SPEAKER_00: It wasn't it wasn't can a Norwegian win?
[1:35] SPEAKER_00: It was which Norwegian can win, because they finished one, two, and three.
[1:39] SPEAKER_00: And at the end of the day, it was the one who none of us picked to win that came out on top.
[1:44] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, and they did it, I don't want to say easy, because it's never easy, but you know, the race was between those three pretty much very early onto the run, right?
[1:55] SPEAKER_01: Like it was never really close between the other guys, like nobody else was challenging the Norwegians.
[2:00] SPEAKER_01: It was just, yeah, who was going to win.
[2:02] SPEAKER_01: And I don't think many people had Kasper as the winner.
[2:05] SPEAKER_01: I think a lot of people had Casper as like a potential top five.
[2:08] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, it's a win and just absolute masterclass, really.
[2:12] SPEAKER_01: Like ran his own race, I think.
[2:14] SPEAKER_01: Like Christian and Gustav, I think, got caught up a little bit, going a bit hard, a bit early, and Kasper just kind of built into his run.
[2:21] SPEAKER_01: And um, yeah, I mean, yeah, flawless masterclass.
[2:25] SPEAKER_01: I mean, he split it so uh it's crazy.
[2:28] SPEAKER_02: Like the dynamics put like Casper drops back, but then Blue goes ahead and Gustav's dropping, and then he catches.
[2:34] SPEAKER_02: It was actually crazy how much going back and forth between them.
[2:37] SPEAKER_02: Um it just kind of shows like their fitness was very similar, right?
[2:41] SPEAKER_02: And it's like the little things over the course of the day that make a difference, like that's where you see someone thrive in the end.
[2:48] SPEAKER_02: It's like Casper came out of the water ahead of them.
[2:51] SPEAKER_02: Maybe he could chill a little bit in T1.
[2:53] SPEAKER_02: Did that help him in the last 5k of the marathon?
[2:56] SPEAKER_02: And then you know, Iron Man's a game of energy.
[2:58] SPEAKER_02: And it's just it's it's it's funny and to watch and cool to see how they manage slight low points and then you know who ends up being the strongest in the end.
[3:06] SPEAKER_02: When in the end, if the dynamics were slightly different, maybe the result could have been slightly different.
[3:11] SPEAKER_00: So we made lots of calls and we m statements and opinions throughout our week of daily pods.
[3:17] SPEAKER_00: And one of the questions that Apo asked is, Will there be more than three lead changes on the run?
[3:22] SPEAKER_00: Me and Apo said yes, Greg said no.
[3:25] SPEAKER_00: There was 12 within the first seven or eight K.
[3:28] SPEAKER_00: Like by the end of the marathon, I think there'd been over 20 lead changes, which is the most in Iron Man World Championships history by so much, it's not even funny.
[3:37] SPEAKER_01: And I think Christian was only at the front maybe once.
[3:40] SPEAKER_01: He was uh Christian was determined to follow that whole day, wasn't he?
[3:43] SPEAKER_01: Like as soon as Laidlow went past on the bike, Christian was on his wheel, and Christian seemed quite reluctant to go to the front on the run.
[3:51] SPEAKER_01: I think Gustav did the lion's share of that first half, and then when Casper caught up, um, yeah, Christian just kind of locked into Casper's shoulder.
[3:59] SPEAKER_01: It was um it was funny, Christian was kind of following all day.
[4:02] SPEAKER_01: And I mean, he has used that strategy before to great effect, but I think today he just never looked like to me when I was watching the run, he never looked the best out of those runners.
[4:13] SPEAKER_01: Like first I was like, oh man, Gustav's gonna win this, and then when Kaspar caught them, it was pretty clear that Kasper was gonna win.
[4:19] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Christian was just following all day and answering moves, but he never really looked like he was gonna win, in my opinion.
[4:25] SPEAKER_02: When when those five, it was like Van Riel and Laylo, and then the the Norwegian hype train comes in, and they're like five of them slightly off each other's shoulder.
[4:32] SPEAKER_02: I was just like, this is so sick.
[4:35] SPEAKER_02: Like, you just don't get that in Iron Man racing.
[4:37] SPEAKER_02: It just when you're five or six hours into the race, it just gets spread out a bit and honestly can get a little boring even for big fans, but we're just like, I feel like we were just treated to such a show.
[4:48] SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, it was really unbelievable to kind of see those images of those five in a row, and then I'm like, wow, I really can't pick a winner here.
[4:57] SPEAKER_00: Out on the course, because I went for a run along the course while it was happening, and the wind was crazy.
[5:03] SPEAKER_00: So you would run out, and it was such a strong tailwind that it felt effortless, and then you would turn around and run back in towards the start-finish line, and the headwind was super strong to the point when I was just jogging, I was like, oh, this I just feel terrible.
[5:17] SPEAKER_00: Like it was so strong, and there were some interesting dynamics with Gustav and Christian.
[5:22] SPEAKER_00: Caspar never got involved in any of it really, but I kind of felt like I don't want to say there was I don't want to start controversy, but I kind of felt like there was a bit of a battle out there between Gustav and Christian where they made the decision, okay, we're not friends at this point.
[5:39] SPEAKER_00: We're now we're now rivals who are competing against each other to win the biggest race in the sport.
[5:43] SPEAKER_00: And there was a bit of back and forth, like who will take the lead?
[5:46] SPEAKER_00: Like Christian would take the lead and then slow down.
[5:48] SPEAKER_00: So Gustav would have to retake it.
[5:50] SPEAKER_00: I saw them speak some words to each other at multiple different points.
[5:53] SPEAKER_00: I'm not sure what they were talking about, but it was always when they were doing that swapping in the wind.
[5:58] SPEAKER_00: I I think there's a chance that they were helping each other out, but to me, it didn't look like that.
[6:02] SPEAKER_00: To me, it looked like best friends turned rivals in that moment.
[6:06] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, I've I've always been fascinated with that dynamic, right?
[6:09] SPEAKER_01: Because surely, well, we know they're all super competitive and they all want to beat each other, but then at the finish line, they're all really proud of each other and it's like they come back to being friends.
[6:19] SPEAKER_01: Like it's it's almost like as soon as the gun goes off, it's enemies, and then when the race is over, it's back to being friends.
[6:26] SPEAKER_01: But I want like there must be some sort of resentment, jealousy.
[6:30] SPEAKER_01: Like, yeah, it's just fascinating to me like how that works.
[6:34] SPEAKER_01: Um, obviously, they all want to win.
[6:36] SPEAKER_01: I think Gustav was probably the most happy um I've seen him in a long time for coming second.
[6:41] SPEAKER_01: Christian, I bet is feeling a little bit, you know, not bitter.
[6:45] SPEAKER_01: I'm sure he's happy with a podium, but I I watched his post race interview and he didn't seem like thrilled.
[6:51] SPEAKER_01: So I'm wondering if there is like I know they're all friends, but there must be some sort of jealousy and um yeah, FOMO going on for sure.
[6:59] SPEAKER_01: I totally agree, Sam.
[7:01] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I feel like you can tell, like Gustav, he's he got second.
[7:05] SPEAKER_02: Yes, he's won a world title before, but I feel like he's so genuinely happy to be there.
[7:09] SPEAKER_02: And then like Casper, one of his friends, wins.
[7:11] SPEAKER_02: But I feel like you could tell with Christian, he's like, ha ha.
[7:14] SPEAKER_02: Like the smile is like slightly fake.
[7:16] SPEAKER_02: He's like, uh, you know that it's that viral clip of him like he sees Jan win and he like his hands go to his face and he like starts to cry a little bit.
[7:23] SPEAKER_02: I feel like there's a little bit of that in him.
[7:25] SPEAKER_02: He just the dude loves to win, and you're right, the dynamic between the three is like uh yeah, super, super interesting.
[7:31] SPEAKER_02: And yeah, I guess we'll see next year if they continue.
[7:34] SPEAKER_02: I mean, we can kind of talk about it.
[7:36] SPEAKER_02: When you surround yourself with world-class athletes, you become world-class athletes.
[7:41] SPEAKER_02: But now, can those dynamics last for five years, you know, if someone's getting the short end of the stick?
[7:46] SPEAKER_02: And uh, yeah, I mean, it it's it can be a hard dynamic to probably manage day-to-day um with the the pressure and the money on the line.
[7:54] SPEAKER_00: Well, I want to talk about that, Greg, because the dynamic has changed multiple times over the course of the Norwegian hype train.
[8:02] SPEAKER_00: So it started with Kaspar and Gustav and Christian training together, and that lasted for quite a while, and they all had a lot of success.
[8:09] SPEAKER_00: And then Kaspar actually went away from the group.
[8:12] SPEAKER_00: He was coached by Mikhail Eden, and Mikhail and Gustav brothers had a bit of a falling out, and so it became Olav, Christian, and Gustav, and Kaspar wasn't involved in the group anymore, and his results I think they suffered.
[8:26] SPEAKER_00: And then this year he comes back to the boys, and the three of them train together all year long.
[8:31] SPEAKER_00: They they clearly do almost every session every day together, and Kasper is suddenly the best Iron Man athlete in the world.
[8:39] SPEAKER_00: So clearly that speaks to the importance of the what the Norwegians have together in their training group and just how big an impact it makes to professional performance to be training with the same group every single day, not missing sessions, not missing missing days, not going to a different town to a different training group or training by yourself for a month and just locking in together and trying to compete and become the best in the world.
[9:03] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[9:03] SPEAKER_01: And they're they're making each other better, right?
[9:06] SPEAKER_01: Like it's just a fascinating, yeah, it's just fascinating to me.
[9:10] SPEAKER_01: Like every day they're rocking up, and they're obviously they're the main competitors to each other and they're making each other better.
[9:17] SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah.
[9:18] SPEAKER_01: I mean, I just yeah, I've said it before, it's just interesting how that dynamic works.
[9:22] SPEAKER_02: Did anyone spend more time in Nice this year than these guys?
[9:25] SPEAKER_02: Like they did an early season camp, right, for like a month, and then I just feel like they they treated the whole race and the whole season as this is the day.
[9:34] SPEAKER_02: No T100 contracts, none of that other BS.
[9:37] SPEAKER_02: This was the day, and they showed up and they frickin' delivered, and it's impressive.
[9:42] SPEAKER_00: I think it shows the power of reconning a course as brutal as this Nice course, and there'll be people who are stoked that we're going back to Kona, because Kona is quite a simple course.
[9:51] SPEAKER_00: Yes, the conditions can be very hard, but the course itself is quite simple.
[9:56] SPEAKER_00: Whereas this course is brutal and breaks almost everyone, and knowing the course and being familiar with the course has shown on both occasions to be a huge advantage.
[10:05] SPEAKER_00: Just going back to your point, Greg, about Christian seeming is upset the right word.
[10:10] SPEAKER_00: To me, it felt upset after the race, like a bit frustrated, a bit upset.
[10:14] SPEAKER_00: Gustave and Kaspar for they to me looked like they were on top of the world, super happy.
[10:18] SPEAKER_00: But I agree with you that Christian he didn't he didn't have that same vibe about him.
[10:23] SPEAKER_00: And I wonder about the dynamics in the group.
[10:26] SPEAKER_00: To me, Christian is the leader, and Gustav was pushing for that title at one point, but then dropped off, and Christian reassumed that role.
[10:34] SPEAKER_00: And Kasper's always been number three, but Christian didn't just lose, he lost to both of them, and he's been the big dog of the group forever.
[10:44] SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
[10:44] SPEAKER_02: If you cramp, are you gonna be like excited in the you know, at the end?
[10:49] SPEAKER_02: Like, I mean, Christian was kind of beating Goose off, and it seemed like his cramps and like his leg kind of locking up, he kind of started hobbling a little bit, and then he had to walk at one point and then finish.
[10:59] SPEAKER_02: So there's obviously if he hadn't have cramped, like he might have been second, right?
[11:05] SPEAKER_02: Like, based on his fitness and how it was trending in the day.
[11:07] SPEAKER_02: We don't quite know.
[11:08] SPEAKER_02: So, yeah, I mean, if you're if you're in second place and you cramp in the last five kilometers and you lose to third, are you like gonna finish the cross the line and be like, I'm so happy?
[11:16] SPEAKER_02: It's like nah, you're your your immediate thought is like, shit, I didn't quite nail that, did I?
[11:21] SPEAKER_01: And he's his toughest critic as well, isn't he?
[11:23] SPEAKER_01: I think pass fail for Christian, like we did that for all the athletes, but in Christian's mind, pass fail for him is probably win.
[11:29] SPEAKER_01: If he wins, it's a pass.
[11:30] SPEAKER_01: If he gets second, it's a fail.
[11:32] SPEAKER_01: Whereas I think Chris uh sorry, Gustav and Casper were kind of like, oh, you know, if I feel good, maybe I can get on the podium.
[11:39] SPEAKER_01: So I feel like they, you know, they had more room to uh to be happy with their results than Christian did.
[11:47] SPEAKER_00: Christian just is the ultimate competitor, isn't he?
[11:49] SPEAKER_00: He loves to win, he hates to lose, and I do get the feeling that he'll be happy for his friends, but this'll eat away at him.
[11:57] SPEAKER_00: And I think 2026 Christian will do everything possible to win at Kona.
[12:02] SPEAKER_00: He and I I think I think maybe more so than Gustav.
[12:06] SPEAKER_00: Like Gustav I think would be really happy about today considering where he's been, and so to just get back and be looking like you're gonna win a world championship and be in the fight for it all day and ultimately finish second, a huge, huge victory for Gustav Eden considering where he was.
[12:22] SPEAKER_02: Well, and we talk about matches and you know, Christian cramped, it's like he kind of went with Laidlow on the bike, and you know, it's it's this game of energy, Iron Man.
[12:31] SPEAKER_02: I mean, do you think that that was a good move?
[12:34] SPEAKER_02: And like I I don't know.
[12:35] SPEAKER_02: I'm curious to see, like, tactically, do you how did Caspar do, how did Gustav do, and how did Christian do?
[12:40] SPEAKER_02: And do you think that made a difference in the end, or it would have been the same no matter what?
[12:44] SPEAKER_00: I think there were some key tactical decisions made throughout the day.
[12:47] SPEAKER_00: So there was a point where Sam Laidlow rode off the Gustav Casper Nick Thompson group and got across and bridged over to Martin Van Riel, and Christian was the only one who went with him, and Caspar and Gustav and Nick Thompson stayed together.
[13:03] SPEAKER_00: I think that was a moment that ultimately came back to bite Christian Blumenfeld because you know on Sam Laidlow's wheel for how good those other guys were clearly going, that it must have been a big effort.
[13:13] SPEAKER_00: And like Apo just touched on before, it just felt like Christian was willing to do those little moves throughout the day to follow.
[13:19] SPEAKER_00: He did multiple throughout the day.
[13:20] SPEAKER_00: And I feel like that one would have been a pretty big one for the boys behind to decide, no, we're not gonna go with that.
[13:26] SPEAKER_00: And so if Christian had have just stayed in that group, I wonder if his legs would have been a little bit better.
[13:31] SPEAKER_00: And then the run had so many tactical things that could have gone different.
[13:36] SPEAKER_00: So Casper, he was the only guy who got close to negative splitting.
[13:41] SPEAKER_00: He ended up positive splitting by only like 30 or 40 seconds.
[13:45] SPEAKER_00: Everyone else in the top 10 positive split by three to ten minutes.
[13:49] SPEAKER_00: So Casper clearly paced things well.
[13:51] SPEAKER_00: He got up to the he dropped off the group, he he uh so he ran up to the group, dropped off the group, ran back up to the group, dropped off the group, and then ran back up, and that was the last time where he we he ultimately went on to pass the group and win.
[14:05] SPEAKER_00: He it wasn't because he was surging up and off, like up to them and then dropping off.
[14:09] SPEAKER_00: It was that the people around him were surging and he just ran his pace.
[14:13] SPEAKER_00: So I think that he Caspar Stoines played the best tactical game of everyone out on course.
[14:19] SPEAKER_01: Stoines! I mean speaking of um speaking of Laidlow, do you think so?
[14:27] SPEAKER_01: We had um obviously he had those cramps in the swim, which for like because Sam's usually one of the best swimmers, right?
[14:34] SPEAKER_01: He'd be in that front handful out of the water.
[14:37] SPEAKER_01: Do you think these cramps in the swim potentially cost him a podium?
[14:41] SPEAKER_01: Because he's had to he's then had to get out of the swim, what was he, a minute down and ride up and through the group.
[14:47] SPEAKER_01: Has that cost him his run and then potentially a podium?
[14:51] SPEAKER_01: Do you guys think?
[14:51] SPEAKER_02: Definitely didn't play into his favor terms of tactics-wise.
[14:56] SPEAKER_02: Um But I mean, I feel like on the day I feel like it their results would have been super similar.
[15:03] SPEAKER_02: I mean, yes, maybe if he was up there with the the boys in front, he would have stayed off and had a big of a buffer.
[15:09] SPEAKER_02: Um, yeah, i it's a tough question, but in the end, it's like uh it happened to him and there was no changing that, and you know, it's yeah, for sure.
[15:19] SPEAKER_01: You can't coulda, woulda, shoulda, can you?
[15:21] SPEAKER_01: It's like yeah, I'm sure thing like things go wrong in Iron Man for everyone.
[15:24] SPEAKER_01: Nobody has a great, like a flawless day, right?
[15:28] SPEAKER_01: Like it's all about how you play the offense and defense.
[15:31] SPEAKER_01: Um so yeah, but I just think it's interesting.
[15:33] SPEAKER_01: Like Sam obviously burnt quite a lot of matches riding back up to the front of the race, which has surely impacted his run quite a bit.
[15:40] SPEAKER_01: So yeah, it's just an interesting thing to think of, but I still think a pretty good race for Sam um in fifth, coming off the year that he's had, and you know, he pretty much missed the first half of the year of training.
[15:52] SPEAKER_01: So yeah, I think that's a solid result for him in fifth.
[15:55] SPEAKER_00: I ran into Richard Lalo, who's Sam Lalo's dad and coach out on the run course, and he told me that what happened was Sam was swimming and he ran into a kayak or something, and then he's he like had some back cramps and back issues, and he stopped in the water because of it.
[16:11] SPEAKER_00: So he fully stopped and he started swimming towards the kayak because he was gonna pull out.
[16:16] SPEAKER_00: He'd made the decision in his head that I'm at least gonna go grab onto this because my my back's hurting so much and I've got back cramps, and I don't know.
[16:22] SPEAKER_00: I don't know whether that's actually what he was gonna do or whether he's just gonna stop and chill, but he literally stopped for like a minute.
[16:27] SPEAKER_00: So I think at that point in his mind, he might have thought his day was done, and he kind of jogged into T1 and he had the look on his face of a guy who was potentially about to make the decision that my day is done.
[16:38] SPEAKER_00: So it obviously came good at some point.
[16:41] SPEAKER_00: Um, but yeah, Richard said he's never had back problems before in his life, he's never had a back cramp cramp before in his life, and it was just one of those things that happens out there.
[16:49] SPEAKER_02: Well, apparently Magnus as well, um he ran into a kayak as well.
[16:55] SPEAKER_02: That's what they said on the broadcast.
[16:57] SPEAKER_02: It's funny because I when they had a drone shot in the swim, and it was the first buoy.
[17:02] SPEAKER_02: It seemed like some people were maybe gonna go to the left of the buoy, and that's when maybe they were running into the kayak.
[17:08] SPEAKER_02: So I'm not sure if there was a miscommunication with the eye, the athletes, like, oh, this is a site buoy.
[17:12] SPEAKER_02: Oh no, we all have to stay to the right.
[17:14] SPEAKER_02: Because majority of people were the right.
[17:16] SPEAKER_02: The riddle train, you know, him doing his crazy stuff, uh, it was on the far right.
[17:21] SPEAKER_02: And then it seems like the guys on the left like really like kind of stopped a little bit when they hit that buoy.
[17:26] SPEAKER_02: So I don't know if a kayak was trying to prevent them from going around it to the left.
[17:30] SPEAKER_02: I mean, if there's a if there's a 750 meter straight, you have to make the buoy sight anyway, right?
[17:37] SPEAKER_02: So if if Iron Man's rules were you have to stay to the right of the buoy, that's probably the wrong thing to do.
[17:41] SPEAKER_02: But I don't know exactly what played out there, but that's kind of what it seemed.
[17:45] SPEAKER_02: And they mentioned that Ditlib had hit a buoy or a kayak as well in the broadcast.
[17:49] SPEAKER_02: So if you have two of the main contenders hitting a kayak in the swim, something is wrong.
[17:54] SPEAKER_01: And those rules just need to be consistent.
[17:56] SPEAKER_01: Like most races, the buoys are sight buoys, unless it's a red turning buoy, right?
[18:02] SPEAKER_01: So but at other races, they tell you to keep all of them on your left, or all of them on your right.
[18:07] SPEAKER_01: Like they just need to make consistent rules.
[18:09] SPEAKER_01: Like yellow buoys are sight buoys, you can go to either side, but you have to turn, you know, either to the left or the right, depending on which race it is, around the red buoys.
[18:18] SPEAKER_01: I think they just need to make that rule consistent, and then that eliminates all confusion.
[18:22] SPEAKER_00: Can we speculate here a little bit, boys?
[18:25] SPEAKER_00: Like I know that it's probably not the best thing to do, but was Jamie Riddle paid by Sam Laidlow for today's race?
[18:38] SPEAKER_01: I mean I can't say for certain, but I would definitely collapse.
[18:46] SPEAKER_00: Yes or no?
[18:47] SPEAKER_01: Um, I mean, I don't think so.
[18:50] SPEAKER_01: Like there was nothing blatant there, was there?
[18:53] SPEAKER_01: It's not like it's not like when Sam Laidlow cramped, Jamie dropped back, and uh Wait, that's kind of what happened.
[18:59] SPEAKER_02: I mean, that's what they were speculating, like because Riddle like stopped and he was looking behind and was like, he's looking for Laidlow.
[19:04] SPEAKER_01: So Yeah, but Riddle always does that when he's swimming.
[19:07] SPEAKER_01: Like Jack put that out to him.
[19:09] SPEAKER_01: He's like, just uh, you know, stop looking behind, just uh I don't know.
[19:13] SPEAKER_02: I mean I'm saying no.
[19:16] SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna say no.
[19:16] SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna say no.
[19:17] SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna say no firmly because I think it it was in Jamie's tactical favor too.
[19:22] SPEAKER_02: Like he's maybe looking for Laidlow to come to the front, you know, to share some work.
[19:26] SPEAKER_02: He's like, hey, I'll push, Schoenberger push, Van Real or push, Laidlow will push.
[19:30] SPEAKER_02: This helps everyone make more money at the end of the day.
[19:34] SPEAKER_02: So I don't know if he needed another incentive.
[19:36] SPEAKER_02: Also, Jamie Riddle just loves racing, being at the front, doing his thing, just like being aggressive out there.
[19:42] SPEAKER_02: So I don't think you had much.
[19:44] SPEAKER_02: He probably like, hey, Jamie, do you think you're gonna push the swim?
[19:46] SPEAKER_02: Oh, yeah, I'll push swims.
[19:47] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, sounds good.
[19:48] SPEAKER_02: All right, cool.
[19:48] SPEAKER_02: Let's move on to the next.
[19:49] SPEAKER_02: He's not gonna need that much convincing to like do what he loves to do.
[19:53] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I was just gonna say, great race by Jamie, 10th.
[19:55] SPEAKER_01: Like, I think that's a phenomenal race for him.
[19:58] SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, backed it up with a with a great bike and a solid run.
[20:01] SPEAKER_01: So yeah, kudos, Jamie.
[20:03] SPEAKER_00: I think he wasn't paid off.
[20:05] SPEAKER_00: I don't think money exchanged hands.
[20:06] SPEAKER_00: Maybe he got helped with some accommodation for where he was staying when he was being Sam Lalo's training partner, maybe flown out.
[20:13] SPEAKER_00: Like Sam's obviously got a lot more money than than um than Jamie Riddle does, and maybe he helped him out as a training partner to to get him to come and train with him.
[20:21] SPEAKER_00: But I definitely think during the course of them training together and hanging out together, it would have been more than a hey, you want to work on the swim?
[20:28] SPEAKER_00: Yep, let's do it conversation.
[20:30] SPEAKER_00: I think they would have come up with plans.
[20:31] SPEAKER_00: Like you think about it, if you're out long riding together and and training together every day, you're talking about the race in way more detail than that.
[20:38] SPEAKER_00: And you're talking about how we could help each other out and how the race might play out and what we could do together on the swim and the bike.
[20:44] SPEAKER_00: So I think it was more likely they've just become friends and training partners who had some pretty clear plans that Jamie wanted to stick to and looked back to try and find Sam and couldn't find him.
[20:54] SPEAKER_00: So he dropped right back down the group and realized he wasn't there and it's like, oh well, I may as well keep swimming.
[20:59] SPEAKER_00: And on this point, I was talking to Jamie Riddle's dad, who said that Jamie had told him that when he was training with Sam Laidlow, the big thing he'd realised is that he needs more bike volume.
[21:11] SPEAKER_00: He'd been a guy in training who didn't do much volume, went and trained with Sam Laidlow, started doing four, five, six even longer rides, and was telling his dad how much stronger he felt on the bike and how much um how much more durable he was.
[21:24] SPEAKER_00: And I think we saw that in his race today where he finally could keep going all day and finish 10th, like you said, which I thought he might blow up a little bit more than that.
[21:32] SPEAKER_00: So I think we did just see a more durable, stronger version of Jamie Riddle on the bike and he was able to hold up on the marathon because of it.
[21:39] SPEAKER_02: I I I said he might get top 10.
[21:41] SPEAKER_02: No, I mean Jamie's got such a bright future, so I'm pumped for him.
[21:44] SPEAKER_02: And you know, going back to the swim dynamics, you know, he had that interview and it was online, maybe it was Iron Man or Pro Tri News, and he was saying, No, we want to make this a complete race.
[21:55] SPEAKER_02: Like, we want to push a swim, we don't want the days of you know having an easy swim.
[22:00] SPEAKER_02: We want this complete triathlete to win the race.
[22:03] SPEAKER_02: So I think we're, you know, I think the Iron Man World Championships over the last few years, the swim has been a little bit softer.
[22:09] SPEAKER_02: And it's, I mean, I I'm loving it as a swimmer.
[22:12] SPEAKER_02: I love to see these guys come and push the swim.
[22:14] SPEAKER_02: And this could be kind of the new trend.
[22:15] SPEAKER_02: Like you're gonna have to up your swim game even a little bit more if you want to be in the front pack and this new crop of you know younger guys or really, really complete track athletes who um, you know, they don't do their three one thousands aerobic.
[22:28] SPEAKER_02: They they know how to get some speed out there and and be good swimmers.
[22:31] SPEAKER_01: I've never missed a front pack in Kona, Greg.
[22:33] SPEAKER_01: So uh the three one thousands work.
[22:35] SPEAKER_01: Only when I only when I'm there.
[22:38] SPEAKER_01: But they did swim 45, um they did swim 45 minutes, which is quick.
[22:42] SPEAKER_01: Um I don't know.
[22:43] SPEAKER_01: I can't, you know, I feel like it's short.
[22:46] SPEAKER_01: A little like 45 minutes is fast.
[22:48] SPEAKER_01: I think Kona, the two times I've done it, we swam 47.
[22:52] SPEAKER_01: Um yeah, 45 is is quick for a non-wetsuit swim.
[22:56] SPEAKER_02: So yeah.
[22:57] SPEAKER_02: They did out swim Sam Askidorin, too, by like 30 seconds.
[23:02] SPEAKER_02: Um so you know the pace was on.
[23:04] SPEAKER_02: And maybe Sam wasn't giving it the full on effort he did in Kona, because you know, the but the the swim course record, they were talking about the swim course record on the broadcast.
[23:12] SPEAKER_02: I'm like, it's been one year.
[23:14] SPEAKER_02: Like, you don't need to talk about the records, guys.
[23:17] SPEAKER_02: Like, this is fucking dumb.
[23:19] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and all three records got broken by all four swim, bike, run, and overall finishing time all got broken.
[23:25] SPEAKER_00: It's like obviously record-breaking day at the IMM World Championships.
[23:28] SPEAKER_00: Um, I think three factors, Greg.
[23:30] SPEAKER_00: I think one, the Mediterranean is so salty.
[23:33] SPEAKER_00: If you haven't been there, you almost can't imagine how salty it is.
[23:37] SPEAKER_00: And you swim in it, and your entire body just is above the water.
[23:42] SPEAKER_00: So it's super fast.
[23:43] SPEAKER_00: Like I haven't swam in like five years, and I did a bit of a swim in it, and I was back swimming fast.
[23:48] SPEAKER_00: And if I jumped into a lake or the the water at Kona, I would swim slow.
[23:52] SPEAKER_00: Like it is fast, it's proper fast water.
[23:55] SPEAKER_00: I think also the boys were hammering out in front.
[23:58] SPEAKER_00: I think the course might be very tinily short.
[24:00] SPEAKER_00: I don't think it's much.
[24:01] SPEAKER_00: I don't think if it is, I don't think it's more than like a hundred meters short.
[24:05] SPEAKER_00: So um I think they're the three factors.
[24:07] SPEAKER_00: Speaking of what you were talking about as well, Greg, Jamie talking about we want to make this a complete race for the young generation coming up and doing that.
[24:15] SPEAKER_00: Did you boys know that of the top ten last year at the 2024 Iron Man World Championships in Kona, only one of those men finished in the top 10 today, one year later at the Iron Man World Championships, and that was last year's champion Patrick Lang, who he only just snuck in there finishing ninth, and it was right towards the end.
[24:36] SPEAKER_00: But there was a period of time where it was looking like no one from last year's top 10 was going to finish top 10 today.
[24:41] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[24:42] SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's it's just the sport every single year.
[24:44] SPEAKER_01: We say it every year when World Championships rolls around.
[24:47] SPEAKER_01: Is this the best field that's ever been assembled?
[24:49] SPEAKER_01: And the answer is yes, every single year, because the sport is progressing rapidly, right?
[24:54] SPEAKER_01: Um, every year you're getting a new cohort of guys, especially young guys coming up that haven't, you know, that they've been born and bred for Ironman racing, you know, like guys like Sam Laidlow, like he might have done a little bit of um World Triathlon or ITU kind of when he was young, but you know, these guys are coming through with the intent of growing up and racing Iron Man.
[25:19] SPEAKER_01: Whereas 10 years ago it was, oh, you go, you do ITU, then you go to 70.3, and then you go to Iron Man in your mid-30s.
[25:26] SPEAKER_01: But now you're having these young guys just coming through with the sole intent of racing Iron Man, and they're all everyone's got a point to prove, you know.
[25:35] SPEAKER_01: Everyone, everyone's brash.
[25:37] SPEAKER_01: Um, I've said it before, they all disrespect the distance, and it's just forcing such fast times, and it's just raising the level of the sport.
[25:48] SPEAKER_00: If you're training for any triathlon or running event, you should 1000% start using precision fuel and hydration as your training and race day nutrition.
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[25:59] SPEAKER_00: I love the PF90, PF-30, and PF30 caffeine gels, and I also love their flow gel for the bike.
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[26:32] SPEAKER_00: Um, they've also nailed their packaging, which can be a bit of a bugbear of mine, but they've made a really um practical and simple packaging that that doesn't spill out and get everywhere in their smaller gels.
[26:43] SPEAKER_00: And the PF90 literally has an easy-to-use on-race day screw top.
[26:47] SPEAKER_00: And in training, the PF90 is just absolutely incredible if you're doing a long run or if you're out on the bike.
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[27:31] SPEAKER_00: And we would always obsess about Sam Laylo's 2023 bike ride on that course as like the best ride in cycling history, in trithlon cycling history.
[27:39] SPEAKER_00: He just dominated, he went off the front.
[27:41] SPEAKER_00: And today, Laidlo himself, Nick Thompson, Christian, Gustav, and Kasper all went faster.
[27:46] SPEAKER_00: And Martin Van Riel was only 20 seconds off.
[27:49] SPEAKER_00: So it does show the level is at a crazy high level right now.
[27:52] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[27:53] SPEAKER_01: And 15 minutes.
[27:54] SPEAKER_01: Kasper went 15 minutes faster than uh Sam Laidlow in 2023.
[27:58] SPEAKER_01: You know, I think I put that question on the um yes or no, like, or over under how many people will go under eight hours?
[28:06] SPEAKER_01: I think I said one and the rest will go over eight hours, and it like it wasn't even close.
[28:10] SPEAKER_01: Like 7.51, Gustav was two minutes behind that, and then Christian and further two minutes, like yeah, 15 minutes faster than what Laidlow went in 2023.
[28:21] SPEAKER_01: It's insane.
[28:22] SPEAKER_00: Apo, what you actually asked is will the winner go under eight hours?
[28:26] SPEAKER_00: And Greg said no, and you said no, and I said yes.
[28:31] SPEAKER_01: No, I said yes.
[28:32] SPEAKER_01: I feel like I said yes as well.
[28:34] SPEAKER_01: Surely.
[28:35] SPEAKER_01: Surely I wasn't wrong.
[28:38] SPEAKER_00: I think I'm misremembering this because you know when you like do all the predictions during the week, you really want yours to be right and you really want the other boys to be wrong.
[28:45] SPEAKER_00: So I might be misremembering that.
[28:47] SPEAKER_00: But I did say not only will the winner, but all of the podium will, and all of the podium did, but then fourth didn't.
[28:53] SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
[28:53] SPEAKER_02: Well well, Christian, he when he signed that Iron Man board, did you guys see that clip?
[28:57] SPEAKER_02: He like wrote like 758 or something.
[29:00] SPEAKER_02: Casper went 751.
[29:02] SPEAKER_02: So I mean, these guys went fat like seven Christian thought 758 would win the race, right?
[29:07] SPEAKER_02: He's writing 758.
[29:08] SPEAKER_02: That's what I'm going, I'm gonna win.
[29:10] SPEAKER_02: Meanwhile, he goes 756 and gets third place.
[29:14] SPEAKER_02: So I mean, they they they outpredicted their own expectations.
[29:18] SPEAKER_02: Now, can I can I ask one thing?
[29:20] SPEAKER_02: Is self-coaching, is it back in?
[29:22] SPEAKER_02: What's the dynamic here?
[29:24] SPEAKER_02: Who writes the training?
[29:25] SPEAKER_02: What what do you really Jack?
[29:26] SPEAKER_02: Do you have any insight there?
[29:27] SPEAKER_02: I feel like you're the one with more knowledge about this stuff, but like do they really coach each other?
[29:31] SPEAKER_02: Like, what's what's the situation?
[29:33] SPEAKER_00: Yes, they actually legitimately haven't been coached by Olav Alexander Boo this year.
[29:38] SPEAKER_00: My understanding of the situation is that they went away from him, but they kind of maintain this public facing, we still work together because they have business together.
[29:48] SPEAKER_00: And it's they've just like so intertwined in that period with all of their business promotion that it probably isn't good for business if they say, well, Alec Olav Alexander Boo doesn't coach us anymore.
[29:58] SPEAKER_00: But my understanding is they he he hasn't coached them all year.
[30:01] SPEAKER_00: And in my opinion, they're kind of back in a big way, and the only difference is that Casper's back training with them and Olaf Alexander Boo isn't their coach.
[30:11] SPEAKER_00: So you be the decision, is is it just that Casper's so good for the training environment, or is it that Olaf Alexander Boo's programming isn't as good as when Christian, Gustav, and Kasper do it on their own?
[30:22] SPEAKER_00: I'm not I'm not gonna form an opinion.
[30:24] SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna sit on the fence.
[30:25] SPEAKER_00: Apo, if you want to get off the fence and give an opinion, go for it.
[30:28] SPEAKER_01: I feel like the vibe I get, and like this is just an outsider looking in, like, I could be completely wrong.
[30:33] SPEAKER_01: I feel like Christian is like, all right, this is what's gonna be the best for me.
[30:37] SPEAKER_01: And Gustav and Kaspar are just like, yeah, that sounds good.
[30:40] SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna do that as well.
[30:42] SPEAKER_01: And then they end up beating him in the race.
[30:45] SPEAKER_02: That's the irony.
[30:46] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I think Jack said I've heard Olaf Alexander Blue, super overrated, not a good coach.
[30:51] SPEAKER_00: No, that's why he's the most opinionated man on the trial.
[30:56] SPEAKER_01: I mean, speaking of the Norwegian method, we should probably touch on our um rankings of the countries that we did.
[31:02] SPEAKER_01: I mean, we had Germany as far and away the absolute favourite, and I think uh, you know, we were wrong, and I think we gotta we gotta own up to those uh those mistakes.
[31:12] SPEAKER_01: Um I mean we did have Norway at number two, so I feel like we were in the ballpark.
[31:17] SPEAKER_01: But um, you know, Germany still had um three in the top ten, or no, sorry, three in the top sixteen, with six ninth and sixteenth.
[31:25] SPEAKER_01: So pretty respectable.
[31:26] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, we were a little bit off on the um on the rankings of Germany being number one.
[31:30] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I think that's because Patrick had a bit of a misfire, really, like, didn't he?
[31:34] SPEAKER_01: Like ninth, I'm sure he's pretty disappointed with that.
[31:37] SPEAKER_00: I actually think if you look at it though, we weren't as far off as I originally thought when I was out on course.
[31:42] SPEAKER_00: I'm like, God, we got that that that Germany thing wrong.
[31:45] SPEAKER_00: But I actually think they, if we did the rankings after the race, that Norway were number one by a mile.
[31:52] SPEAKER_00: And we said that.
[31:52] SPEAKER_00: We said that after the race, we could look silly about not putting Norway number one, and they could be number one or number 15, but they definitely should have been number one.
[32:01] SPEAKER_00: And next year going into Kona, they will be number one.
[32:04] SPEAKER_00: So, spoiler alert, when you listen to the Daily Pods in 12 months' time, we're gonna have Norway number one on our list.
[32:10] SPEAKER_00: But I do think Germany still was second, so yes, we got that wrong, but not by a lot with the sixth, ninth, and sixteenth finish.
[32:17] SPEAKER_00: And now wait for Greg to talk about America here.
[32:19] SPEAKER_00: Insert it now.
[32:20] SPEAKER_02: No, I was actually gonna talk about my boy Jonas Schoomberg, dude.
[32:23] SPEAKER_02: You know, he ran 236.
[32:25] SPEAKER_02: Can I just tell you, Jonas did classic Jonas?
[32:28] SPEAKER_02: I mean, the end of the bike let him down, essentially, right?
[32:32] SPEAKER_02: The and two miles into the run, he split 1007.
[32:35] SPEAKER_02: And Caspar Storn Stoynez.
[32:40] SPEAKER_02: I can't even say it wrong.
[32:41] SPEAKER_02: Like, it's like, I don't know.
[32:43] SPEAKER_02: He went 1045.
[32:44] SPEAKER_02: So Jonas did his classic genre and just blitzed T2 and ran the first two miles in almost a five-minute flat K uh pace.
[32:52] SPEAKER_02: He actually ran 236 in the end, which um I thought I thought was good.
[32:56] SPEAKER_02: For some if you blow up at the end of the bike and then throw in a 236, I'm not exactly sure what happened there, but um yeah, that's that's impressive.
[33:04] SPEAKER_02: And America, yeah, Mark Watt.
[33:07] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean Rudy, it's probably not the race he wanted, didn't couldn't hold pace on the bike, but uh yeah, I guess some some question marks to for the US.
[33:19] SPEAKER_02: It's like, when can someone come and win this race from the US?
[33:22] SPEAKER_02: Because it's it's really never happened.
[33:24] SPEAKER_01: I think Sam Long had a um pretty solid race.
[33:27] SPEAKER_01: Like I feel like we nailed what Sam Long would do.
[33:29] SPEAKER_01: He would swim, he had actually a pretty good swim.
[33:32] SPEAKER_01: Um he was like in that pack with Worfe.
[33:34] SPEAKER_01: He was in a big pack, and then he just kind of did his own race and then had a really good run.
[33:38] SPEAKER_01: And um, I can't remember what his finishing position was overall, like 13th or 14th, I think.
[33:42] SPEAKER_00: 14th.
[33:43] SPEAKER_00: 14th.
[33:44] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, 14th.
[33:45] SPEAKER_01: I think that was pretty good, and that's pretty much right where we put Sam, I think.
[33:48] SPEAKER_01: I think we put him in right in around that 15th.
[33:50] SPEAKER_01: Um, he might be a little bit disappointed.
[33:52] SPEAKER_01: I'm not sure if he was expecting more, but um I think a good a good day for Sam.
[33:56] SPEAKER_00: I think he can't be disappointed.
[33:58] SPEAKER_00: I think he actually did really well considering how bad he was positioned all day.
[34:02] SPEAKER_00: He rode better than I thought, still not at the level he needed to.
[34:06] SPEAKER_00: It's just not the course for him.
[34:07] SPEAKER_00: And he did run really solid.
[34:09] SPEAKER_00: We gave the over at under with Sam Long's swim deficit as six minutes, and I I took over.
[34:14] SPEAKER_00: Greg took under.
[34:16] SPEAKER_00: I don't remember what you took, Apo, but I think he was about 6'15 off.
[34:20] SPEAKER_00: So he was right around that mark, and he was with a group that pre-race we would have said was really good in Leon Chevalier and Cam Werth.
[34:27] SPEAKER_00: And we'll come back to both of those men in a second.
[34:30] SPEAKER_00: Um but but yeah, I thought it was good, and I thought Matt Marquart was super impressive.
[34:35] SPEAKER_00: He did cramp again, not really in T1.
[34:38] SPEAKER_00: I was kind of at transition.
[34:39] SPEAKER_00: He didn't look like he was cramping, but then when he got on the bike, it looked like he started cramping a little bit.
[34:44] SPEAKER_00: And I'm not sure if a little bit down the road he kind of stopped on the side of the road or something, because he lost a heap of time um to the first time check, or like just around the first time check.
[34:53] SPEAKER_00: So I do think at some point he started cramping really badly and lost a few minutes, but it didn't seem to derail his race as much as we thought it would if it happened.
[35:01] SPEAKER_00: And for him to finish eighth, I thought it was a crazy, crazy strong performance for a guy that I don't think is suited to that course.
[35:09] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think he crashed on the descent as well.
[35:11] SPEAKER_01: Um, so yeah, I think a really solid race, top ten.
[35:15] SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, he's just proving to maybe be America's next uh you know, he's the next best thing for Iron Man racing for America, I think.
[35:23] SPEAKER_00: Well, let me ask you boys, contender or pretender, Kona 2026, Matthew Marquis, contender for the podium.
[35:32] SPEAKER_01: I mean one word, Upper.
[35:34] SPEAKER_01: Yes or no?
[35:36] SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna say pretender.
[35:38] SPEAKER_01: The podium one word, yeah.
[35:40] SPEAKER_01: Pretender.
[35:41] SPEAKER_02: I'm gonna say pretender too.
[35:42] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, he you can't he lost what four minutes at the start of the bike?
[35:45] SPEAKER_02: Like he you can't cramp or like have these like hiccups and get on the podium.
[35:51] SPEAKER_02: He can win Iron Man cans.
[35:53] SPEAKER_02: I mean, everyone knows how soft the Australian fields are, but when you come to a world championship, you know, you can't you cannot but in all seriousness, you can't cramp and get on the podium, or you can't lose four minutes on the start of the bike because you're cramping and get on a podium in a world championship.
[36:06] SPEAKER_02: Without it, I'll I'll say contender.
[36:09] SPEAKER_01: And the um the difference between a podium and top ten is massive, right?
[36:15] SPEAKER_01: Like that's a huge jump.
[36:17] SPEAKER_01: It's a huge performance difference.
[36:19] SPEAKER_01: Um so I think Mark White had a great race, but yeah, the podium is like that's another step above, right?
[36:26] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and if you look at it purely on position, eight looks great, but it's 20 minutes back off the lead.
[36:30] SPEAKER_00: So it is a huge gap that you need to make up in in 12 months.
[36:34] SPEAKER_00: Boys, I want to rewind a little bit and go back to what we were talking about at the start of the podcast, because I just have one more question about the Norwegians.
[36:42] SPEAKER_00: So we know about the the ASIC's meta speed speed ray because of Hayden Wilde.
[36:47] SPEAKER_00: He's made such a like a drama out of this shoe, and we've gone, well, he would win in anything Birkenstocks, Crocs, whatever it is.
[36:54] SPEAKER_00: It doesn't matter about the shoe.
[36:56] SPEAKER_00: But Christian and Gustav are sponsored by on, so they have to wear on racing shoes.
[37:01] SPEAKER_00: Kasper, who trains with them and he's one of their best friends, he he could easily get teed up with some some ons by Christian and Gustav, even if they didn't pay him, they could easily get him shoes if he felt they were the best shoes on the market.
[37:13] SPEAKER_00: But he's not sponsored by any running shoe company.
[37:16] SPEAKER_00: And what shoe does he decide to wear?
[37:18] SPEAKER_00: The ASICs Meta Speed Ray.
[37:21] SPEAKER_00: And then what happens?
[37:23] SPEAKER_00: He he runs 229, he beats Christian and Gustav in a running battle over the marathon, which we would never have expected.
[37:30] SPEAKER_00: He looks like the best runner in triathlon.
[37:33] SPEAKER_00: Is it Caspar or is it the shoes?
[37:36] SPEAKER_01: The most controversial shoes in the uh in the pro field.
[37:40] SPEAKER_01: I mean, that is the luxury of not having a shoe sponsor, right?
[37:43] SPEAKER_01: Like you can pick and choose.
[37:45] SPEAKER_01: Um shoe technology is always developing.
[37:49] SPEAKER_01: And you know, a few months ago it was that um Puma shoe that was the fastest.
[37:53] SPEAKER_01: Now it's potentially this um this ASIC shoe, the Metaspeed Ray, and yeah, every month there's a different fast shoe.
[38:01] SPEAKER_01: And I think if you're not sponsored, you have that luxury of just chopping and changing when you feel.
[38:06] SPEAKER_01: Um and I mean I'm sure Casper's gonna get some contracts, you know, offered to him, and it just depends.
[38:12] SPEAKER_01: Is is the money of a shoe contract worth signing for, even if you know it's slightly slower?
[38:20] SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, maybe potentially, like if it's only a handful of seconds slower, then potentially.
[38:25] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I think I'm sure there's a lot of athletes, and Casper might be one of them that foregoes signing with a shoe company so they can have that flexibility.
[38:34] SPEAKER_01: This is ridiculous the shoe conversation.
[38:36] SPEAKER_02: Jack loves shoes so much, have you noticed?
[38:38] SPEAKER_02: The man won't ever stop talking about running shoes.
[38:41] SPEAKER_02: It's like he wants to post about it on the internet, he wants to talk about it on the podcast.
[38:44] SPEAKER_02: But look, on is on the cutting edge too.
[38:48] SPEAKER_02: So is Asics, so is Nike.
[38:50] SPEAKER_02: Like, I just don't believe that these shoes are that different, like even the new ones that come out.
[38:54] SPEAKER_02: Now, I guess if you can test all of them in some like protocol and or you go on the track, maybe it it certain shoes fit certain athletes and cadences and foot strikes differently, but like how big could that really be?
[39:09] SPEAKER_02: And I guess I'm kind of wondering how I you know, I don't even know how you go about and like decide that based on on maybe it's just how they feel on your foot, right?
[39:19] SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I just I don't think it matters that much.
[39:22] SPEAKER_02: And um you know, yes, it's a luxury, but I don't think it's that important.
[39:28] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[39:28] SPEAKER_01: I think at the top top level, all a lot of the shoes are very comparable.
[39:33] SPEAKER_01: And you're right, different shoes um favor different running styles, right?
[39:37] SPEAKER_01: So um, yeah, you just gotta what's fast for fastest for one person might not be fastest for you.
[39:42] SPEAKER_01: You gotta try and find that shoe that's fastest for you yourself.
[39:45] SPEAKER_00: I do think that any professional who asks for my advice, unless it's big money, I wouldn't be signing a shoe sponsorship.
[39:52] SPEAKER_00: Like if all you get is free shoes, don't be an idiot.
[39:56] SPEAKER_00: Do not sign that contract because it makes you feel special.
[39:59] SPEAKER_00: Only sign it if it's a deal like Hayden Wild, where it's like four years and you get a lot of money.
[40:03] SPEAKER_00: Otherwise, stay away from it so that you can keep on the cutting edge of what works best for you.
[40:08] SPEAKER_00: Boys, I wanted to go through a few more things and it'll help us talk about the race as well.
[40:12] SPEAKER_00: We've already talked about some things that we got right or wrong.
[40:15] SPEAKER_00: So let's go through a few more things that throughout the week of daily pods we got right or wrong.
[40:19] SPEAKER_00: And I want to start with myself.
[40:22] SPEAKER_00: I got one thing, and I don't know if you boys can already assume what it's gonna be.
[40:26] SPEAKER_00: As wrong as is humanly possible to get something wrong, and that's that Christian Blumenfeld was written off no chance, probably gonna walk the marathon or DNF.
[40:36] SPEAKER_00: I literally said all of those things.
[40:38] SPEAKER_00: So uh can you guys please paste me about this and make me realize just how stupid I am.
[40:45] SPEAKER_01: Everyone that's listening, uh pull over your car and just point and laugh at Jack, please, and uh and say, You were wrong, Jack.
[40:54] SPEAKER_02: Jack pretends he has this like insider information, but he's just looking on Strava and he's making these big claims.
[41:00] SPEAKER_02: So obviously the man doesn't even know what he's talking about.
[41:02] SPEAKER_02: So remember, never take trath on advice from Jack Kelly.
[41:07] SPEAKER_00: But Greg, I did get something a hundred percent right.
[41:11] SPEAKER_00: I literally offered to make a tattoo bet with Joe Skipper that Jason West would finish closer to 25 minutes down off the bike than 10.
[41:20] SPEAKER_00: You both disagreed with me.
[41:22] SPEAKER_00: He was 25 minutes down 150k into the bike.
[41:27] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, but you didn't know.
[41:28] SPEAKER_01: He was saving it for that last 30k where he was gonna drop 400 watts and bring it back to uh 17 minutes.
[41:34] SPEAKER_00: Has he finished yet?
[41:35] SPEAKER_00: Is he on the is he off the bike course yet?
[41:39] SPEAKER_02: I actually I don't think he is off the bike course because I don't think he finished the bike.
[41:44] SPEAKER_02: I don't think he finished the race, right?
[41:45] SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I mean we don't know what happened.
[41:48] SPEAKER_02: I thought he he was going pretty well through like 40k.
[41:52] SPEAKER_02: It didn't seem like it was going to be big, but you know, when you burn matches on that climb or people climb strong, then the race gets decided up on that upper part, too.
[42:01] SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I mean everyone has a lot of energy for the first 60k and the gaps just ballooned in that that back half, huh?
[42:08] SPEAKER_01: And yeah, I mean it's a shame.
[42:09] SPEAKER_01: Like we don't want to make uh you know, people put and you know what it's like, Greg, Jack, you not really like you put a lot of stuff into like a you put a lot of work into a race and a lot of your time, energy, and mental reserves.
[42:22] SPEAKER_01: And yeah, it's a shame when it doesn't go your way.
[42:25] SPEAKER_01: Um and unfortunately, yeah, for Jason that that was the case today.
[42:29] SPEAKER_01: Jack doesn't know what it's like, he just uh he just sits behind his microphone.
[42:36] SPEAKER_00: Edit that bit out that Apo just said.
[42:38] SPEAKER_02: All right, well, I just want to go out on record.
[42:40] SPEAKER_02: I did say there was a I said I wouldn't be surprised if it was a Norwegian podium.
[42:46] SPEAKER_02: I didn't say it was likely, but I think Apo and you, Jack, maybe shut it down.
[42:51] SPEAKER_02: You thought maybe Casper couldn't be on there?
[42:53] SPEAKER_02: You're like, oh no, Casper gets dropped.
[42:55] SPEAKER_02: I look at Strava, Casper gets dropped on the on the run workouts, so I know everything.
[43:00] SPEAKER_02: So you I think you said he could have a good day and finish maybe top five or ten, but dude, the the guy shows up and wins the freaking race.
[43:07] SPEAKER_02: I mean I mean, do you think he even thought he could do that?
[43:11] SPEAKER_02: Like truly deep down, or are you thinking, hey, maybe I can get on a podium with these guys on my best day?
[43:16] SPEAKER_00: That's the one question I have.
[43:17] SPEAKER_00: That's my if I could if I could know the answer to one question from the race, that's what I want to know.
[43:21] SPEAKER_00: What did Casper really think he could do leading into the race?
[43:24] SPEAKER_00: Myself and Apo, we both did say he could finish top five.
[43:28] SPEAKER_00: So none of us were going to be surprised if he had a good performance, but I think me and Apo both are definitely surprised by the great performance he had because when you said that, we both were in agreement that the reason there wouldn't be a Norwegian podium sweep is because Casper couldn't finish top three, but he could finish top five.
[43:44] SPEAKER_00: So egg on our face, me and uh me and Apo, we got that one horribly wrong, clearly.
[43:49] SPEAKER_01: We did, yeah.
[43:50] SPEAKER_01: And um there was we were right about I think all of us picked one sub 230 run, but none of us picked that it would be Casper.
[43:58] SPEAKER_01: I think I said Matt Hansen.
[44:00] SPEAKER_01: Greg, you said Jason West.
[44:02] SPEAKER_01: And Jack, you might have said Patrick Lang.
[44:04] SPEAKER_00: Patrick Lang, yeah.
[44:05] SPEAKER_00: 230.
[44:06] SPEAKER_01: So we were all wrong on who who was going to run it, but we all got it right that one person was um was going to break the 230.
[44:14] SPEAKER_01: But um another thing, Jack, you and I were both right about was um seven from the top ten Europeans.
[44:20] SPEAKER_01: Um and that there was exactly seven Europeans in the top ten.
[44:24] SPEAKER_01: Um the non-Europeans, Nick Thompson, shout out, great race by Nick, I think he's the next big hope for Australia in the uh long course world.
[44:33] SPEAKER_01: Jamie Riddle and Matt Marquart um were the three uh non-Europeans in that top ten.
[44:39] SPEAKER_00: And Greg did think that there was going to be six Americans finishing the top ten.
[44:43] SPEAKER_00: He was quite.
[44:44] SPEAKER_00: I said five.
[44:45] SPEAKER_00: You said six.
[44:45] SPEAKER_00: Remember you said five, but then you listed six, and me and Apo were like, that's six.
[44:49] SPEAKER_00: And you're like, yeah, yeah, six.
[44:50] SPEAKER_00: So you were close, only five off uh with the one inside the top ten, and that was eighth in Matthew Mark.
[44:56] SPEAKER_02: In my end.
[44:57] SPEAKER_02: All right, cool.
[44:57] SPEAKER_02: Goodbye.
[44:59] SPEAKER_00: Apo, I want to touch on Nick Thompson, the man you just talked about.
[45:02] SPEAKER_00: I mean, he's arrived on the world stage, hasn't he, hasn't he?
[45:06] SPEAKER_00: Us Australians, we know how good he is.
[45:08] SPEAKER_00: We've seen what he's been doing for like five years now, but uh that was that was the performance that he he needed to announce himself to the rest of the world.
[45:17] SPEAKER_00: The construction worker himself, Nick Thompson, uh an amazing day.
[45:22] SPEAKER_00: One of the better cyclists in long course triathlon, and he had a really consistent swim and run as well today.
[45:28] SPEAKER_00: He um yeah, he ended up finishing in seventh place, and he was the only only guy who could ride with the Norwegians and lay lower in that big group.
[45:36] SPEAKER_00: So just an amazing performance from Nick Thompson out there.
[45:39] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
[45:40] SPEAKER_01: And I mean, domestically, Nick's been pretty strong the last few years.
[45:43] SPEAKER_01: Like he's won a couple of 70.3s.
[45:45] SPEAKER_01: Um I've raced him a couple of times.
[45:48] SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, super strong guy, but this year he's just taken his performance to the next level.
[45:53] SPEAKER_01: Um he was great in Texas.
[45:55] SPEAKER_01: Um he just got a third place at 70.3's LMZ a couple of weeks ago.
[46:00] SPEAKER_01: And then yeah, seventh today.
[46:02] SPEAKER_01: I mean, that's a that's a great result.
[46:03] SPEAKER_01: And he's pretty young as well.
[46:05] SPEAKER_01: I think he's 24, so yeah, pretty bright future for Nick.
[46:08] SPEAKER_02: I gotta give a shout-out to the Nick Thompson fans because I was watching the YouTube strain.
[46:12] SPEAKER_02: I, you know, I used that Nord VPN, so I got on that YouTube stream.
[46:16] SPEAKER_02: The Nick Thompson fans were having a field day in the chat.
[46:19] SPEAKER_02: They're like, Nick Thompson's uh, you know, tears cure cancer, but too bad he's never cried.
[46:25] SPEAKER_02: Like all these like ridiculous, like I don't know if you guys know who Chuck Norris is, like Chuck Norris type jokes, and they were just the whole day.
[46:33] SPEAKER_02: And like he seems like he has a great He's a great guy, like in his community.
[46:37] SPEAKER_02: He's got his like squad and he doesn't take it so seriously.
[46:41] SPEAKER_02: You know he's gonna be throwing back some beers tonight.
[46:43] SPEAKER_02: So yeah, I'm just like a massive Nick Thompson fan, and like I thought his fans were like people in the chat were getting pissed.
[46:48] SPEAKER_02: They're like, God, shut up about Nick Thompson.
[46:50] SPEAKER_02: They're like, it was just I was pissing myself laughing, dude.
[46:53] SPEAKER_01: It it was a good time out there.
[46:55] SPEAKER_01: It wouldn't surprise me if that um that prize money that he earned today is going straight behind the bar this evening.
[47:00] SPEAKER_01: So if you're in if you're out with uh with Nick tonight, you're probably gonna have a good time.
[47:05] SPEAKER_00: You've never seen a more nonchalant, chilled-out bloke in your life.
[47:09] SPEAKER_00: He I know that we're gonna come back and talk to Patrick Lang, but it seems like Patrick Lang might have developed a weed addiction over the last 12 months.
[47:16] SPEAKER_00: But Nick Thompson really does.
[47:18] SPEAKER_00: He just he's just a weed addict, but a non-weed addict, weed addict.
[47:22] SPEAKER_00: You know what I mean?
[47:23] SPEAKER_00: Like he's just so chilled out 24-7.
[47:26] SPEAKER_00: People ask him a question the day before the biggest race of his life.
[47:29] SPEAKER_00: He's like, Yeah, I don't know, like, yeah, it's gonna be good, see what happens out there.
[47:32] SPEAKER_00: And he's just such a like he's such a cult figure now in Triton, I reckon.
[47:36] SPEAKER_00: Like, I reckon he's a cult hero to many, many people in the Triton world.
[47:40] SPEAKER_00: Uh, I I'm a huge fan.
[47:42] SPEAKER_00: I've become a huge fan over the last year, and I think a performance like this today franks it, you know, like you can be the chilled, laid-back guy, funny guy, and it can get you fans, but until you frank it with a performance that the whole world can see, even if you've had other good performances, like like Nick's had great performances, but this is one that the whole world can see, and that's how you really develop respect and a big fan base because now not only are you one of the more likable guys, but you're also one of the best guys, and that's what people love.
[48:14] SPEAKER_00: I personally think that all triathletes or endurance athletes in general should be taking creatine daily.
[48:19] SPEAKER_00: However, not all creatines are created equal, and in the case of Pillar Performances creatine monohydrate, it features single origin creepure made in Germany, which is the purest form of creatine monohydrate available on the market.
[48:32] SPEAKER_00: And unlike most brands, it's informed sports certified.
[48:36] SPEAKER_00: So, as a triathlete, why should you be taking creatine daily?
[48:40] SPEAKER_00: Well, firstly, energy production.
[48:42] SPEAKER_00: Creatine helps replenish ATP, which is the body's primary energy source.
[48:47] SPEAKER_00: This means higher anaerobic capacity and better overall athletic performance.
[48:51] SPEAKER_00: Enhanced recovery is the second thing.
[48:54] SPEAKER_00: Creatine reduces muscle damage and inflammation while promoting faster glycogen replenishment.
[49:00] SPEAKER_00: This leads to quicker recovery between training sessions and races.
[49:03] SPEAKER_00: It's it's probably, in my opinion, the main reason why you should use it.
[49:07] SPEAKER_00: Just the in hugely enhanced recovery that that it it leads to.
[49:11] SPEAKER_00: And then thirdly, is the cognitive benefits.
[49:13] SPEAKER_00: Creatine supports brain function, reducing mental fatigue and improve improving focus throughout endurance events, but also just day-to-day in your life.
[49:21] SPEAKER_00: If you're trying to get up early and train and then go to work and then um look after your family and spend quality time with the people you care about, maybe even train a second time.
[49:30] SPEAKER_00: I mean, you just need to have the cognitive ability to do so.
[49:33] SPEAKER_00: And creatine definitely helps that.
[49:35] SPEAKER_00: So if you would like to try some creatine monohydrate for yourself, which I highly recommend you do, then head to pillarperformance.shop or for North American listeners, listeners, head to thefeed.com and enter the code TTH for 15% off all first purchases.
[49:50] SPEAKER_00: That's code TTH for 15% off all first purchases.
[49:55] SPEAKER_02: Jonas Schoenberg, which I touched on him briefly.
[49:58] SPEAKER_02: I was really I don't know, admin about his winning chances, and I'm curious to kind of hear you guys' take on his race and how it played out.
[50:08] SPEAKER_02: And do you think I was like way off base, or you think you saw some glimpses that say, hey, yo, Jonas Schoenberg is still a contender here in the future?
[50:16] SPEAKER_01: He was six.
[50:16] SPEAKER_01: I think that's pretty good.
[50:18] SPEAKER_01: I mean, he was a little bit down off the bike.
[50:21] SPEAKER_01: I think that last, you know, I'm not 100% sure where he got that separation.
[50:26] SPEAKER_01: Um, but then he came off and ran a 236.
[50:28] SPEAKER_01: Like he had one of the faster runs of the day.
[50:31] SPEAKER_01: Um, I think a pretty good all-round performance by Jonas, and I think he should be pretty happy with that.
[50:36] SPEAKER_00: I do think you were wrong though, Greg.
[50:38] SPEAKER_00: Like, if we're judging what what we were right and wrong about in the lead up to the race, you were wrong about Jonas.
[50:43] SPEAKER_00: For like three months leading into the day, you just kept telling everyone he was gonna win.
[50:48] SPEAKER_00: And at no point did he really like uh, you know, prove you right.
[50:52] SPEAKER_00: And he ended up finishing sixth, which in my opinion is a really, really good result.
[50:56] SPEAKER_00: And I thought he was super solid.
[50:58] SPEAKER_00: He got dropped in in the bike when the Norwegians came up past him and Nick Thompson rode away from him.
[51:03] SPEAKER_00: And I thought, oh, that's day done here.
[51:06] SPEAKER_00: Probably he's probably just gonna fade back through the field.
[51:08] SPEAKER_00: But he held strong and actually had a really good marathon.
[51:11] SPEAKER_00: He um ended up running 236, so he had one of the fastest marathons of the day, which surprised me.
[51:17] SPEAKER_00: Uh, and so I think in in some way, we were all right about Jonas Schomberg being a real threat in the race and someone who was gonna help shape the race, and he did.
[51:26] SPEAKER_00: He went crazy on the swim as well with Jamie Riddle.
[51:29] SPEAKER_00: He went crazy through through T1.
[51:31] SPEAKER_00: He had a little gap early on the bike, like he was just riding like a psychopath early on the bike, and and he really helped cement that gap that Martin Van Riel, Jamie Riddle, and himself had, which was a big part of the first part of the bike course, and um and and he had a great day.
[51:45] SPEAKER_00: But yeah, you were wrong.
[51:46] SPEAKER_00: He he wasn't close to winning the race at the end of it.
[51:48] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, well, neither was your pick late, Lowe, so whatever.
[51:52] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I know.
[51:53] SPEAKER_00: I yeah, I did change my pick late, like about six hours out from the race or twelve hours out from the race to Benjamin Zorgnotti.
[52:00] SPEAKER_00: Uh neither of them ended up winning, so I was wrong on both.
[52:03] SPEAKER_01: Speaking of um our boy Zorgnotti, he is now on an equal playing field with Christian Blumenfeld as um two to two, so the next head-to-head will be the decider.
[52:13] SPEAKER_01: It's um it's best of five, so yeah, it's going down to the wire between Zorgnotti and Blumentfeld.
[52:18] SPEAKER_01: But um, you know, I think our boy Ben, he uh he finished 29th.
[52:23] SPEAKER_01: So I mean, I think a pretty solid day all round and maybe better than the 20th that we uh ranked French Polynesia.
[52:30] SPEAKER_01: Maybe we need to uh yeah, pump those rankings up a little bit next time.
[52:34] SPEAKER_00: Well, if you look at it, French Polynesia definitely didn't deserve to be last at the end of the day.
[52:39] SPEAKER_00: So um, you know, I I think Brazil move even further down the list, and and I think that uh because they finish at 39th and 33rd, and our our boy Zorgnotti finishes 29th.
[52:49] SPEAKER_00: So the Brazilians who probably already weren't happy with us about putting them at 14th aren't going to be happy when we move them down to 19th or 20th and and put the great nation of French Polynesia up to about 15th or 16th at the end of the day, all on the back of one man, Benjamin Zorgnotti.
[53:05] SPEAKER_00: Um one thing I got very wrong, this might be worse than the one I got wrong about Christian.
[53:13] SPEAKER_00: I said that Camworth could win the race.
[53:15] SPEAKER_00: I said he could podium the race, I said he could top five the race.
[53:18] SPEAKER_00: Uh he wasn't really close to any of those things.
[53:22] SPEAKER_00: I mean, he had an okay day.
[53:24] SPEAKER_00: I I'm sure he won't be that happy with it.
[53:27] SPEAKER_00: He finished 21st.
[53:29] SPEAKER_00: I like I don't know if I could have been more wrong about that.
[53:31] SPEAKER_00: I don't know.
[53:32] SPEAKER_00: Did my heart get in the way of my predicting?
[53:34] SPEAKER_00: Is 42 years old just too old to be a professional at this point with all the young kids coming up?
[53:40] SPEAKER_01: I mean, he's definitely defying the age barrier, isn't he?
[53:44] SPEAKER_01: 42.
[53:45] SPEAKER_01: Um, right, that's probably 15 years older than a lot of the guys in the top 10.
[53:51] SPEAKER_01: Um, but Cam has shown that he's he actually has been getting faster over the years.
[53:56] SPEAKER_01: I don't know if it's his age or if it's the crazy training that he did.
[54:00] SPEAKER_01: You know, what didn't he do an eight-hour ride seven days ago or something?
[54:04] SPEAKER_01: Uh and then a 30k ride.
[54:07] SPEAKER_01: Like that's we all go crazy over the Norwegian training, but Cam's training is probably more like a week out from the race, he's riding eight hours.
[54:16] SPEAKER_01: Like, surely that's having some sort of impact.
[54:19] SPEAKER_00: He rode 237.14 kilometres with 4,241 meters elevation gain in eight hours and four minutes with two professional athletes, then ran 31.33k, and uh and then you know, he followed up again the the next week.
[54:38] SPEAKER_00: Uh uh the week sorry, that was the week after he'd ran, he'd um rode 307.94 Ks, 9,960 metres elevation, 13 hours and 39 minutes with a 40k run, not that a few days earlier.
[54:51] SPEAKER_00: So he he did some crazy training in the like two, three weeks leading up to the race.
[54:56] SPEAKER_00: And I think he gotta I think he got a question that did he leave his race out on the Andorian roads?
[55:01] SPEAKER_02: Well, and he came he he lost nine minutes on the bike to the the fastest riders on course, which Who had the exactly the fastest split?
[55:10] SPEAKER_02: Was it Nick Thompson?
[55:11] SPEAKER_02: No, he was Sam Laidlow.
[55:12] SPEAKER_02: Oh, it was it was Laidlow.
[55:14] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so I mean I didn't see too much like Moto interference out there, like getting big drafts.
[55:20] SPEAKER_02: What do you guys like?
[55:21] SPEAKER_02: How do you rank the motos on the day um out there and in terms of advantage for the front group?
[55:27] SPEAKER_00: I thought it was a really fair race.
[55:28] SPEAKER_00: I thought across the board it was one of the fairer races I've seen, and I guess that's what makes me a little bit nostalgic already, even though the race has just finished about this course.
[55:37] SPEAKER_00: I think Kona presents difficulties with fair racing.
[55:41] SPEAKER_00: It's a majestic island, Kona, and I'm excited that us three are going to go and do live shows there in 2026, and we're gonna do daily pods uh in a few weeks' time for the women, but it does have its difficulties with fair racing, which brings me to our boy Patrick Lang.
[55:57] SPEAKER_00: So he got exposed on the bike today.
[56:00] SPEAKER_00: Niece will expose you if you can't ride well and you cannot hide in groups like you can in Kona.
[56:06] SPEAKER_00: We saw him uh at the swim start, he had his Snoop Dogg gown on, like I said, potentially he, you know, got on the um on the on the garga uh in the in the lead up to the race.
[56:16] SPEAKER_00: That's what the dressing gown reminded me of.
[56:18] SPEAKER_01: Uh the devil's lettuce.
[56:21] SPEAKER_00: The devil's lettuce.
[56:22] SPEAKER_00: No, no, just we're just joking.
[56:24] SPEAKER_00: Patrick Lang is not that kind of guy.
[56:26] SPEAKER_00: Um, but the dressing gown did make it seem like it.
[56:29] SPEAKER_00: Uh he just got exposed.
[56:31] SPEAKER_00: The bike was too hard for him.
[56:32] SPEAKER_00: The boys up front were riding too fast.
[56:34] SPEAKER_00: I have egg on my face with that one.
[56:35] SPEAKER_00: I said he actually is a better rider than people give him credit for, uh, and that he would probably ride pretty well.
[56:40] SPEAKER_00: He didn't ride well.
[56:42] SPEAKER_00: He um he couldn't put his marathon to good use because he was too far back.
[56:45] SPEAKER_00: So I was wrong on that one.
[56:47] SPEAKER_00: He uh the defending champ and second here last time, he ended up finishing ninth, which is, I would say, a really poor result for Patrick Langer, a great result for most people, but no doubt he's walking away from this race feeling quite disappointed because in his mind, he's a he's a first, second, or third type of guy.
[57:03] SPEAKER_00: He's not a ninth type of guy.
[57:05] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think he'll have some sort of disappointment, especially when he ran.
[57:08] SPEAKER_01: Like he ran 231, he had the second fastest run.
[57:11] SPEAKER_01: So if he's in striking distance, he's on the podium.
[57:15] SPEAKER_01: Um, and I don't know, I I wouldn't say that, you know, you said that Patrick's a better rider than he is.
[57:22] SPEAKER_01: Maybe you just had a rough day.
[57:23] SPEAKER_01: Like Patrick is a strong rider, right?
[57:25] SPEAKER_01: Like I was in that group in Kona and I got popped, and you know, that was a really hard ride, and he stayed in there and put himself in that position to win at Kona last year.
[57:33] SPEAKER_01: So I think maybe just a bit of an off day on the bike, but still, yeah, I'm sure he's gonna be disappointed.
[57:39] SPEAKER_01: But kudos to him and you know, not giving up, throwing down a fast marathon and sneaking into the top ten.
[57:45] SPEAKER_01: I'm sure it's definitely not what he wanted.
[57:46] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I think he respected the course and respected the competition.
[57:50] SPEAKER_01: So good on Patrick.
[57:51] SPEAKER_02: Seven minutes slower ride than Nice two years ago.
[57:54] SPEAKER_02: So there's there's no way around it.
[57:56] SPEAKER_02: He didn't ride like he had planned to or wanted to, right?
[57:59] SPEAKER_02: Like he, you know, he's coming into this.
[58:01] SPEAKER_02: Hey, I'm gonna ride, I need to ride a few minutes faster.
[58:04] SPEAKER_02: But the crazy thing is, even if he had rode ten minutes faster, like he's still on the outside looking in, you know, uh fifth or sixth, too.
[58:12] SPEAKER_02: So I think no matter what, Patrick probably would have been beaten by a couple better athletes today, even if he was a little more on on the bike, and it just shows, like Appo said earlier, the level just goes up and up and up, and uh yeah, to the moon we go.
[58:26] SPEAKER_00: I got a few things wrong over the last week of daily pods, um, but I also got a few things right.
[58:32] SPEAKER_00: And one thing I got right on the last daily pod we did was I said of the favourites, Leon Chevalier would be the one to have a bad day and would finish well outside the top 10.
[58:43] SPEAKER_00: And he was he was bad all day by his standards.
[58:46] SPEAKER_00: He finished 25th, he was 40 minutes back, and watching out on course, like because you obviously wouldn't have seen a lot of of him on T on TV, he was battling like the entire marathon was a suffer fest for Leon.
[58:59] SPEAKER_00: Kudos to him for staying in the fight.
[59:01] SPEAKER_00: You're you think about it, you're a guy who was leading the Iron Man World Championships halfway into the run last year.
[59:06] SPEAKER_00: You finished fourth and fifth and sixth at the Iron Man World Championships, and then you're nowhere near it, not fighting for the win at all, almost an hour back.
[59:14] SPEAKER_00: That's a hard position to stay in the fight, but to his credit, he stayed in it.
[59:18] SPEAKER_00: He he respected the race and he respected his competitors and all the age groupers out there, and he finished the race 25th, 40 minutes back.
[59:26] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think you've cursed him, Jack.
[59:27] SPEAKER_01: You were uh you were on a campaign to smear his name.
[59:31] SPEAKER_01: And uh it's uh no, no, I'm kidding.
[59:33] SPEAKER_01: Um yeah, I mean, I think this year has been tough for Leon in uh in general.
[59:38] SPEAKER_01: He hasn't shown the uh the form that he's had in previous years, and I think yeah, he was perhaps coming in on the back foot, and um but yeah, I mean it it's hard, you know.
[59:49] SPEAKER_01: The the sport's evolving and Iron Man's a tough day.
[59:52] SPEAKER_01: And if you're one or two percent off, especially at world championships, you're just a long way behind.
[59:57] SPEAKER_01: It just yeah, it just exposes you.
[59:59] SPEAKER_02: Can I pose a question to the group real quick?
[1:00:02] SPEAKER_02: I'm worried about Great Britain and their long course scene.
[1:00:05] SPEAKER_02: And I mean, Leon made me think of it because he kind of trains Britain.
[1:00:08] SPEAKER_02: I know he's French, but like they didn't have any guys in the top 20 at the World Championship.
[1:00:14] SPEAKER_02: Uh you know, they're it seems like their women are stronger, and you know, even the ITU scene is stronger, but the men's long course scene in the UK, uh, you know, Great Britain, UK, should we get into that?
[1:00:25] SPEAKER_02: No, I'm just kidding.
[1:00:26] SPEAKER_02: Um I I'm a little bit worried about like, not worried, but who's gonna fill that void that I I mean when is the last UK superstar um in the long course scene in the male side?
[1:00:37] SPEAKER_00: I mean, Joe Skipper coming fifth at Kona in 2022 is their last good result.
[1:00:43] SPEAKER_00: When was their last great result?
[1:00:45] SPEAKER_00: I mean, Sam Laidlow is kind of British, kind of French.
[1:00:49] SPEAKER_00: I'm not I'm not sure like if he says I'm fully French or I'm half French, half Great Britain, but he won in 2023 and and you know he's he's he's if he's not if he at least if he's not like 25% British in his mind, I'd be surprised.
[1:01:01] SPEAKER_00: But like just someone who is an out and out British champion in men's long course racing, there hasn't like Iron Man distance racing, there hasn't really been one in a while.
[1:01:12] SPEAKER_00: And I don't really see who it's going to be.
[1:01:16] SPEAKER_00: Like, do you think there's anyone racing right now for Great Britain on the world stage who can win an Iron Man World Championships in the next five years?
[1:01:24] SPEAKER_01: I mean, maybe not five years, but um there's like Great Britain have always been super strong um in the world triathlon circuit, and I'm sure that's going to develop athletes that progress into 70.3.
[1:01:37] SPEAKER_01: We're already seeing some guys in T100 and 70.3 having some good races.
[1:01:42] SPEAKER_01: Um like uh Harry Palmer and Sam Dickinson got third at the T100 a couple of weeks ago.
[1:01:48] SPEAKER_01: Like there is some promise coming, but I think over the full distance, um like the Iron Man distance, yeah, there is a little bit of a need for someone from to fly the UK flag.
[1:01:58] SPEAKER_01: But uh yeah, I think in time, like with the development coming through out of Great Britain, it will happen.
[1:02:04] SPEAKER_01: Um but yeah, at the moment it's a little bit lackluster.
[1:02:07] SPEAKER_00: Especially considering how strong their women are.
[1:02:09] SPEAKER_00: Great Britain women have been a force in world triathlon across all distance, full distance, 70.3, short course racing for the better part of a decade now.
[1:02:19] SPEAKER_00: But then if you look at the men, I think you're right in Sam Dickinson, he's he's probably gonna be pretty good appo.
[1:02:24] SPEAKER_00: I don't know if he'll transfer to the full distance.
[1:02:26] SPEAKER_00: Kieran Linders was in the race today.
[1:02:28] SPEAKER_00: Me and you both agreed he's one of the more underrated trihletes on the planet, but he didn't have a good day today.
[1:02:33] SPEAKER_00: Harry Palmer's shown good form over 70.3, came top 10 at 70.3 worlds last year, obviously.
[1:02:38] SPEAKER_00: I'm I'm high on Cameron Main.
[1:02:40] SPEAKER_00: I don't think he can be the best in the world over the Iron Man distance, but a good 70.3 guys.
[1:02:46] SPEAKER_00: Tom Bishop's good, Zach Cooper's good.
[1:02:48] SPEAKER_00: Um that that's probably about it off the top of my head.
[1:02:52] SPEAKER_00: But yeah, I don't see any world beaters there.
[1:02:54] SPEAKER_00: I don't see any, you know, Gustav Eden, Christian Blumenfeld, Kaspar Stoynes, Magnus Ditliff, Sam Lade, low quality there.
[1:03:01] SPEAKER_00: Maybe I'm wrong, but yeah, I'm bit I'm I agree, Greg.
[1:03:03] SPEAKER_00: I'm a bit worried about Great Britain men's long course trython at the moment.
[1:03:07] SPEAKER_01: And speaking of Magnus, I mean we haven't really touched on him.
[1:03:10] SPEAKER_01: Um just looked off all day.
[1:03:12] SPEAKER_01: I did see posted on his Instagram that he had been dealing with some sickness.
[1:03:18] SPEAKER_01: Obviously, that's played into it.
[1:03:20] SPEAKER_01: And um, yeah, just was never really looking like the Magnus that we know and love.
[1:03:26] SPEAKER_01: Uh he was there or thereabouts um on the bike for a little bit, but yeah, as soon as he got onto the run, I was tracking and just saw that he was running, you know, pretty slowly for Magnus's standards, and yeah, just a rough day for him in general, which is which is sad because a guy, that guy, Magnus, on his day could have been challenging, I think, for that podium.
[1:03:46] SPEAKER_01: Um, so yeah, disappointing day for Magnus.
[1:03:49] SPEAKER_00: And I talked to Magnus last night, and honestly, he was in great spirits.
[1:03:53] SPEAKER_00: Like he was super happy, he was super relaxed, he was having fun, and I and he looked healthy and fit.
[1:03:59] SPEAKER_00: I didn't ask him, like, have you been struggling with anything?
[1:04:01] SPEAKER_00: Like, I you you don't I didn't want to put that kind of thing out there, but I didn't get the vibe at all that he was sick or struggling, and I'm and I walked away from it from it thinking, oh, I think Magnus is in a pretty good space here.
[1:04:11] SPEAKER_00: But you could tell he was off all day, couldn't you?
[1:04:14] SPEAKER_00: So I do believe that he probably was a little bit sick.
[1:04:16] SPEAKER_00: Um and yeah, I uh I mean what what do we think?
[1:04:20] SPEAKER_00: Like can Magnus has Magnus already hit his peak?
[1:04:24] SPEAKER_00: Like, has he already achieved the biggest results he's going to in his career?
[1:04:27] SPEAKER_00: Jan Fradino made a really interesting point in commentary that Magnus Ditlib is kind of the new Andreas Raylert.
[1:04:34] SPEAKER_00: He finishes second at and or third at his best in the big races, he can go out and set world record performances and win other races dominantly and beat all of these guys.
[1:04:44] SPEAKER_00: But when it comes to the biggest race on the biggest day, he struggles a little bit.
[1:04:48] SPEAKER_00: What do you guys make of that comment from Jan?
[1:04:51] SPEAKER_00: And do you agree or disagree with it?
[1:04:53] SPEAKER_01: Oh, I mean, Magnus will be back.
[1:04:54] SPEAKER_01: He's he's young, he's got years left.
[1:04:57] SPEAKER_01: Um, he's shown that he can race at the front of these races.
[1:05:01] SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, I d I don't think his year has been the best, kind of like Leon's.
[1:05:05] SPEAKER_01: He's kind of had a bit of a tumultuous year, but he'll be back.
[1:05:08] SPEAKER_01: He'll he'll be hungrier than ever.
[1:05:10] SPEAKER_01: He's young, he's got time on his side.
[1:05:12] SPEAKER_01: I think I think Magnus is still a threat to win something like a a Kona um next year.
[1:05:17] SPEAKER_01: I wouldn't write him off just yet.
[1:05:19] SPEAKER_01: I would agree too, and he'll be back.
[1:05:22] SPEAKER_02: I mean, Magnus has a great team around him, and I think he he's still young, is the thing, right?
[1:05:27] SPEAKER_02: I mean, he's in his late 20s, maybe he's 28, 27, so I think he's got a lot of years ahead of him.
[1:05:34] SPEAKER_02: Now, kind of speaking on guys, not that Magnus doesn't show up on big days, because he normally shows up to a solid degree.
[1:05:42] SPEAKER_02: Daniel Backagard, you know, it's been a couple big races now, kind of the end of the season stuff, where he really hasn't quite performed how anyone would expect to, and it's kind of been a theme too.
[1:05:55] SPEAKER_02: So, you know, obviously that gets in your head mentally.
[1:05:58] SPEAKER_02: I don't know how how do Do you guys assess him and where do you move on if you're Daniel?
[1:06:04] SPEAKER_02: How do you move forward from this?
[1:06:04] SPEAKER_02: You know, he got a new coach and things, he changed things up this year, but it didn't really pan out.
[1:06:09] SPEAKER_02: Do you stick with the process?
[1:06:10] SPEAKER_02: Do you make more changes?
[1:06:11] SPEAKER_02: How do you how do you move forward?
[1:06:13] SPEAKER_00: I don't know, Greg.
[1:06:14] SPEAKER_00: I I don't know.
[1:06:15] SPEAKER_00: Honest answer.
[1:06:16] SPEAKER_00: I I almost have nothing to talk about here because I don't know where I'd go if I'm Daniel Backagard.
[1:06:22] SPEAKER_00: I don't think he's living up to the expectations he has of himself in his own head.
[1:06:28] SPEAKER_00: I think he's gone backwards this year.
[1:06:30] SPEAKER_00: I haven't seen anything that makes me think Daniel Backgaard can be a world champion next year.
[1:06:35] SPEAKER_00: So I do think there has to be an element of back to the drawing board.
[1:06:39] SPEAKER_00: You never know what's going on behind the scenes.
[1:06:41] SPEAKER_00: You don't know whether injuries in the lead up, was he sick in the lead up?
[1:06:44] SPEAKER_00: Is something going on in his life?
[1:06:46] SPEAKER_00: I just think he was a long way off what he's capable of doing.
[1:06:51] SPEAKER_00: And so if if he had the perfect preparation, hypothetically, nothing went wrong.
[1:06:56] SPEAKER_00: He trained really well.
[1:06:57] SPEAKER_00: I think there needs to be huge re-evaluation of what he's doing.
[1:07:01] SPEAKER_00: But if something did go wrong, then I think you can chalk it up to that, and he can get himself back in the mindset of give me 12 good months of training, get me on that Kona start line next year.
[1:07:11] SPEAKER_00: I want redemption for today.
[1:07:14] SPEAKER_01: And coaching changes sometimes take 12, 18 months, right?
[1:07:18] SPEAKER_01: Like you don't see instant sometimes you do, like um, but often when you change, you do have to give it some time.
[1:07:25] SPEAKER_01: And Daniel did show some good form early in the year.
[1:07:29] SPEAKER_01: He was fourth or fifth in Texas, had a great race, and we kind of thought that coaching change had done wonders for him.
[1:07:36] SPEAKER_01: But and then he'd been quiet for the rest of the year.
[1:07:38] SPEAKER_01: We thought potentially um he was going quiet to focus on this race, but maybe there was something else going on behind the scenes that we don't know.
[1:07:45] SPEAKER_01: Um But yeah, I mean, Daniel is a great athlete, and I know he misfired at Kona last year and then another misfired today.
[1:07:54] SPEAKER_01: So it's disappointing he hasn't shown his form at this world stage.
[1:07:57] SPEAKER_01: But again, I think I think he's another guy that has time on his side.
[1:08:01] SPEAKER_01: He's similar age to Magnus.
[1:08:02] SPEAKER_01: He'll be back and hungry for more.
[1:08:05] SPEAKER_02: You touched on Magnus saying he was sick in the lead up.
[1:08:08] SPEAKER_02: Sometimes I like my put on my judgmental hat, and I'm like, oh, I hate how everyone says they're sick when they don't have a good day and stuff like that.
[1:08:15] SPEAKER_02: But do you think it's kind of like a cop out at all?
[1:08:18] SPEAKER_02: Like, would you rather see athletes just be like, hey, yeah, you know, I showed up, I gave my all, just wasn't my day, or do you do you like this?
[1:08:23] SPEAKER_02: It seems like some people make the sickness excuse too much, almost.
[1:08:27] SPEAKER_02: Like they're kind of full of it.
[1:08:28] SPEAKER_02: So I'm just it's just a random thought, and I'm kind of curious to hear your guys' thought.
[1:08:32] SPEAKER_02: Because I feel like I'm too judgmental on it sometimes, like on the from the outside in.
[1:08:36] SPEAKER_02: But I also really respect athletes who don't make excuses as as well.
[1:08:41] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean it's hard because you want to you want to let everyone know why you didn't perform, right?
[1:08:46] SPEAKER_01: So there's a there's an element pulling you both ways.
[1:08:50] SPEAKER_01: Um, because I've wrestled with that before when things haven't gone my way for one reason or another.
[1:08:55] SPEAKER_01: I'm like, do I put this out there?
[1:08:57] SPEAKER_01: It looks like an excuse, but I also don't just want to say, oh, I had a bad day because I felt bad, you know, like there is a reason why they put uh why someone performs bad.
[1:09:07] SPEAKER_01: And I think you do want to let people know.
[1:09:09] SPEAKER_01: But yeah, it's a it's a tricky needle to thread, right?
[1:09:13] SPEAKER_01: You don't want it to come across as excuses, but you also want to give a reason why.
[1:09:18] SPEAKER_01: Um so yeah, I mean, I don't begrudge anyone for posting that.
[1:09:22] SPEAKER_01: And Magnus is honest, he's not that guy that makes excuses for himself.
[1:09:25] SPEAKER_01: So yeah, I fully believe Magnus if you post something like that.
[1:09:29] SPEAKER_00: I think there's lots of elements to this.
[1:09:31] SPEAKER_00: I think ask yourself first, am I telling the truth?
[1:09:34] SPEAKER_00: Was I sick today?
[1:09:35] SPEAKER_00: Was I sick this week, or was I sick five weeks ago and I'm using that as an excuse still?
[1:09:40] SPEAKER_00: If you're actually sick in the moment, then the dilemma becomes well, do I tell the truth or do I just put it out there without lying but without telling the full truth?
[1:09:50] SPEAKER_00: Because when your day does come when you you win big races, or you win your first 70.3 or your first Iron Man and the person who was expected to win but doesn't post, oh, I was sick, had a shitty day, you know, does that then take away from your win?
[1:10:05] SPEAKER_00: And I think that as professional athletes, you do it for the courtesy of the pe people who won and had good days, as to not make it seem like, well, I could have done something, but I didn't because I was sick.
[1:10:16] SPEAKER_00: Instead, I think you're always best to just be like, I had a bad day, looking forward to coming back for redemption.
[1:10:22] SPEAKER_00: Well done to everyone who who finished ahead of me, or well done to the winners or the podium or whatever, just because it's gonna come back some point in the future, and you don't want that happening to you on a day when you had a good race.
[1:10:33] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, for sure.
[1:10:34] SPEAKER_01: That's another element that I forgot about as well.
[1:10:36] SPEAKER_01: Like, if you win a race and then you see your main compet um competitor, you know, m say that, then you're like, well, are you just saying that you had a bad race and you would have won if this didn't happen?
[1:10:47] SPEAKER_01: Like it does take away a little bit from the winner.
[1:10:49] SPEAKER_01: Um No, you're saying uh fuck you in your head when you read that app up.
[1:10:55] SPEAKER_01: Um yeah, I mean it's tricky, isn't it?
[1:11:00] SPEAKER_01: You don't want to you don't want to piss anyone off, but you do want to give a reason why you didn't perform.
[1:11:04] SPEAKER_01: But um I mean let's move on.
[1:11:07] SPEAKER_01: We didn't touch on this person at all, and that's Martin Van Riel.
[1:11:12] SPEAKER_01: I don't I think this is the first time we brought up his name.
[1:11:14] SPEAKER_01: Um and he got fourth.
[1:11:17] SPEAKER_01: Uh we got caught up in the uh Norwegian hype train, and I think Martin had a great race.
[1:11:22] SPEAKER_01: He looked really disappointed when he crossed the line.
[1:11:25] SPEAKER_01: I don't know if he was just exhausted, but he did not crack a smile.
[1:11:28] SPEAKER_01: He just walked, finished, pretty much got straight out of the limelight.
[1:11:32] SPEAKER_01: I don't know if he was just like, I'm over this, I just want to sit down and, you know, get a beverage.
[1:11:38] SPEAKER_01: But uh I think a great race from Martin.
[1:11:40] SPEAKER_01: He showed that he is a contender, I think.
[1:11:43] SPEAKER_01: And uh without his best lead-in, he was injured for a lot of this build.
[1:11:49] SPEAKER_01: I think fourth is really good.
[1:11:51] SPEAKER_00: I think both are true, Apo, that he was just absolutely wrecked and tired and had gone to the well just to finish that marathon and finish in fourth.
[1:12:00] SPEAKER_00: But I do think he was disappointed.
[1:12:02] SPEAKER_00: I got the same like kind of vibe from him all day.
[1:12:05] SPEAKER_00: I I thought he seemed he seemed like in the moment and in the fight, but frustrated because I think he knew he could have been further up and competing for this win.
[1:12:15] SPEAKER_00: And put yourself in Martin Van Riel's shoes, where last year you come onto the longed course scene and you're dominating everybody and you you you win the T100 World Championships, and then you set your sights on Nice, a course that in your head you think suits you because you're a great climber, a good runner, good all-round athlete.
[1:12:31] SPEAKER_00: And then, you know, two months out from the race, you just you just start to be able to not train properly because you get injured and you want to get there and you want to get there and your body's not cooperating, and then you do get on the start line, but you know how underdone you are, and then you find yourself in the fight for the win in the marathon, and you're just thinking, like, fuck me.
[1:12:51] SPEAKER_00: I'm I'm I'm fighting for the win, and I've had this build where I've barely done any run sessions, I'm nowhere near the best version of myself, and I'm still almost winning the race, and then you see it run off in front of you, and you know you could be there in your own head, and so that's what that's what Martin Van Riel was dealing with today.
[1:13:09] SPEAKER_00: So I think he would have had extreme levels of frustration and disappointment and anger, as well as just being cooked from from having to fight for 42Ks off limited run preparation.
[1:13:20] SPEAKER_02: Running 240 off the bike, off what we what we think limited run training, right?
[1:13:25] SPEAKER_02: I mean, we don't know exactly what he was doing, say in the last six weeks, but it's really impressive.
[1:13:31] SPEAKER_02: And obviously it's not the most impressive performance of the day.
[1:13:34] SPEAKER_02: He didn't win, but to get fourth and like he I guess he looked disappointed.
[1:13:39] SPEAKER_02: He seemed cooked.
[1:13:40] SPEAKER_02: I mean, if you don't run a ton before an Iron Man, you just have to battle every step, it seems like.
[1:13:45] SPEAKER_02: So, you know, he he battles and he gets fourth place, and like Jack said, being disappointed, he planned his whole year for this, essentially, right?
[1:13:56] SPEAKER_02: I mean, he tried to go get that Cozumel slot last year at the end of the year to to prep for Nice for a course that's that's perfect for him.
[1:14:03] SPEAKER_02: So I'm sure it's a lot of mixed what coulda, shoulda, woulda for Martin Van Riel, but you know, bright future ahead, of course.
[1:14:11] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and he'll follow the 48 or 72 hour rule.
[1:14:13] SPEAKER_00: And in in a couple of days, he will he will feel good about this race.
[1:14:17] SPEAKER_00: He'll look at it very differently to how he's probably feeling about it right now.
[1:14:20] SPEAKER_00: And the emotions will turn from disappointment and frustration to mainly happiness and content, and he'll be like burning with motivation for for next year.
[1:14:30] SPEAKER_00: Boys, I just want to go way back.
[1:14:33] SPEAKER_00: We talked about Casper a lot, we touched on Christian, we talked about the Norwegians, but I just feel like we didn't give Gustav Eden his full props.
[1:14:41] SPEAKER_00: Can we can we just talk about that a little bit?
[1:14:43] SPEAKER_00: This guy was the best long horse triathlete the world had ever seen between like 2020 and 2022.
[1:14:49] SPEAKER_00: He won Kona, he was dominant, he couldn't, every middle or full distance race he touched, he won.
[1:14:55] SPEAKER_00: His mother dies, he has this you know turmoil with his brother, the training group stuff, he kind of loses motivation for the sport, falls out of love with it.
[1:15:05] SPEAKER_00: He goes back to being an absolute pretender for like two, two and a half years, and then he comes back this year today, and there were points in the marathon where I thought, oh, he's back, he's just gonna win this.
[1:15:18] SPEAKER_00: He looked by far the most comfortable at points, he was leading the run for a lot of it.
[1:15:23] SPEAKER_00: He finishes second.
[1:15:24] SPEAKER_00: I feel like we didn't give the man his props.
[1:15:26] SPEAKER_00: It was incredible what Gustav Eden did today.
[1:15:29] SPEAKER_01: From Kona last year, where he pulled out, you know, part way into the run, and he was a long way back to now second and pretty close to winning.
[1:15:40] SPEAKER_01: Like it's an an amazing turnaround in 12 months.
[1:15:43] SPEAKER_01: And I think this it could have gone one of two ways for Gustav.
[1:15:47] SPEAKER_01: He was he had a big road, a long road ahead, right?
[1:15:51] SPEAKER_01: And he like a lot of athletes could have walked away from the sport.
[1:15:54] SPEAKER_01: He'd done a lot, he could have been like, I'm not getting back to where I was, my best days are behind me.
[1:15:59] SPEAKER_01: Um, but yeah, he showed commitment, came back, and probably one of his best races ever, even though he didn't win, I think this performance was would be up there.
[1:16:09] SPEAKER_01: Um top three minimum for Gustav in his performances of his career, I think.
[1:16:14] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and uh personally I keep thinking about this, and it's something that Apo criticized Gustav earlier for going to the same races as Christian, and I remember this because I just thought that's the wrong take.
[1:16:26] SPEAKER_02: So personally, I'd like to see a personal apology from Apo, because Gustav obviously made the right decision on his year.
[1:16:32] SPEAKER_02: Um so if we could get that really quickly from you.
[1:16:35] SPEAKER_01: Am I apologizing to Gustav or to you?
[1:16:40] SPEAKER_01: I am a selfish guy, aren't I?
[1:16:41] SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
[1:16:42] SPEAKER_00: I think Craig's right though, Apo.
[1:16:44] SPEAKER_00: I'm gonna give him the floor now.
[1:16:45] SPEAKER_00: Apologize to Gustav Eden.
[1:16:48] SPEAKER_01: Gustav, if you're listening, and we know you do, I'm sorry for uh for questioning your race choices.
[1:16:56] SPEAKER_01: Um I was wrong, you were right, you're better than me, and never listen to anything I say ever again.
[1:17:07] SPEAKER_02: Heartfelt.
[1:17:08] SPEAKER_02: But touching on Gustav, one one more thing.
[1:17:11] SPEAKER_02: Like you said earlier, Apo, the he showed so much elation when he crossed the line.
[1:17:16] SPEAKER_02: It must just be this huge weight lifted off his shoulders to kind of get back to the level where he knew he could, and I think we're all just pumped on it.
[1:17:24] SPEAKER_02: I mean, uh, he's he's almost like the people's champ.
[1:17:26] SPEAKER_02: I mean, I know there's a thousand people's champs.
[1:17:28] SPEAKER_02: Obviously, Benjamin Zorgnati is one of them, but everyone in the sport watches Gustav get second and they're freaking pumped up.
[1:17:35] SPEAKER_02: Like everyone loves this guy, he's a character, so we're pumped for Gustav, and uh, you know, I'm a pro triathlete out there, and I don't I'm not sure I want I mean I want to race Gustav next year, but you also don't because how it went this year, you know he's gonna be firing next year to you know take home as many titles as he can.
[1:17:53] SPEAKER_00: I'm with you, Greg.
[1:17:54] SPEAKER_00: My heart was so warm out there watching him today.
[1:17:57] SPEAKER_00: It made me genuinely happy.
[1:17:58] SPEAKER_00: He's in my opinion, he's the most likable person in the sport.
[1:18:02] SPEAKER_00: I I'm I'm such a fan of Gustav.
[1:18:04] SPEAKER_00: I would say with a lot of the field, I don't feel like a fan anymore because I know so many of them.
[1:18:09] SPEAKER_00: They're just normal people to me.
[1:18:11] SPEAKER_00: Gustav is the one that makes me a fan.
[1:18:13] SPEAKER_00: Like, I just love watching everything he does, every bit of content he puts out.
[1:18:16] SPEAKER_00: I think so funny.
[1:18:18] SPEAKER_00: I just I barrack for him.
[1:18:19] SPEAKER_00: In that run battle today, I I found myself like cheering for Gustav.
[1:18:24] SPEAKER_00: Like I just loved it.
[1:18:25] SPEAKER_00: And uh seeing him back was was super heartwarming.
[1:18:28] SPEAKER_00: Um, speaking of heartwarming, throughout the week, I think the highlight for myself, Greg, and Apo was interacting with you guys and getting you guys involved in the show.
[1:18:38] SPEAKER_00: It's something we've always wanted to do.
[1:18:40] SPEAKER_00: And and and and Spotify ended up being the way that we did it with the Spotify comments section and you guys commenting after every daily podcast we did, giving us the first 30 minutes of the next show.
[1:18:51] SPEAKER_00: And and we loved it because it it kind of surprised us how funny a lot of the comments were, how many in jokes there were, how many great conversations there were.
[1:18:59] SPEAKER_00: Uh, and I put it out on Instagram before this podcast that, well, the only way to finish the last podcast for this Men's Iron Man World Championships uh uh for this men's Iron Man World Championships week was if you guys jumped over onto Spotify and uh left some comments about the race, any questions you had, comments you had, anything like that.
[1:19:18] SPEAKER_00: So uh we're gonna wrap the show up here by by reading some of your comments uh and and having quickfire discussion about them.
[1:19:25] SPEAKER_01: I got a good one here from Mitch Fakwa.
[1:19:28] SPEAKER_01: Posting after the Nice finish.
[1:19:30] SPEAKER_01: Actually, super disappointed that the Iron Man World Championships is going back to Kona.
[1:19:34] SPEAKER_01: Do you think this style of bike course is a much better leveler of the playing field and really weeds out the athletes benefiting the most from the bike packs?
[1:19:43] SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, we touched on it during the podcast, Mitch.
[1:19:46] SPEAKER_00: Uh Mitch has been a listener forever, by the way.
[1:19:48] SPEAKER_00: Uh definitely.
[1:19:49] SPEAKER_00: I I've I said the same thing.
[1:19:51] SPEAKER_00: I feel nostalgia already, um, and this course will be missed.
[1:19:54] SPEAKER_00: It's still out there, but Corona next year expect more bike pack dynamics, I think.
[1:19:59] SPEAKER_00: Uh I've got one from another Mitch, Mitchell Franks.
[1:20:02] SPEAKER_00: That race did not disappoint.
[1:20:04] SPEAKER_00: I read it like that because it's all in capitals.
[1:20:06] SPEAKER_00: That was fucking insane.
[1:20:08] SPEAKER_00: The whole race script flipped on its head, laid low comeback, a five-man run battle, a Norwegian sweep, holy shit, and one of the greatest underdog wins from Kasper Stornius to run away from Blumenfeld and Eden with a sub 230.
[1:20:20] SPEAKER_00: Amen, Mitchell Franks.
[1:20:21] SPEAKER_00: Great comment.
[1:20:22] SPEAKER_02: Uh, SSB comments if that wasn't the greatest performance the sport has ever seen, I don't know what is.
[1:20:28] SPEAKER_02: And uh there's a lot of greatest performances we've ever seen.
[1:20:32] SPEAKER_02: Uh it happens about every six months, but I'm here for it.
[1:20:36] SPEAKER_00: He's not wrong though, is he?
[1:20:38] SPEAKER_01: From Jack Renucci.
[1:20:40] SPEAKER_01: Does this mean we can finally learn how to correctly pronounce Caspar Stoyners?
[1:20:44] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we covered that at the start of the podcast.
[1:20:46] SPEAKER_01: Caspar Stoinas is the official pronunciation.
[1:20:51] SPEAKER_00: Casper Stoinas.
[1:20:52] SPEAKER_00: Uh speaking, speaking of that, the amount of feed whack back we've got about how stupid we are with our conversation about is Great Britain part of Europe?
[1:21:02] SPEAKER_00: Like, that has been one of the most like common messages I've got, like grumpy, angry messages about how stupid we are.
[1:21:09] SPEAKER_00: I'm still not sure.
[1:21:10] SPEAKER_00: Like, I'm not convinced where Great Britain is.
[1:21:12] SPEAKER_00: Are they in Europe?
[1:21:13] SPEAKER_00: Are they their own thing?
[1:21:14] SPEAKER_00: I'm still not convinced.
[1:21:16] SPEAKER_02: All right, we got one from D Heywood23.
[1:21:19] SPEAKER_02: Do you do we think the commentators looked at any of the letters in the name Cold A Cray before attempting to pronounce it?
[1:21:26] SPEAKER_02: That's probably so wrong, by the way.
[1:21:28] SPEAKER_02: Um called it Colde Saray all day.
[1:21:32] SPEAKER_02: Also, we need better screen graphics like F1, the tour, because it's so hard to follow, even on the app.
[1:21:38] SPEAKER_02: If you weren't following the tracker, you had no idea what was going on all day.
[1:21:41] SPEAKER_02: That's for sure.
[1:21:42] SPEAKER_02: Commentators dropped the ball on that.
[1:21:44] SPEAKER_02: Also, the two main commentators and Iron Man were bad.
[1:21:46] SPEAKER_02: They've always been bad, and I can't believe that's the the group that Iron Man thinks this is the this is the hitters that are going to take us to the to the best broadcast broadcasts we have.
[1:21:56] SPEAKER_02: So get Mark Allen and Jan on there full time and let's let's call it a day and let's let's come on, let's move on from that.
[1:22:03] SPEAKER_00: Speaking of the commentators, got one from Nikki Rickerby here, and I'm reading this because I completely agree.
[1:22:08] SPEAKER_00: I kept thinking this as well, Nikki, particularly uh Dee Dee Grig Greesbauer.
[1:22:14] SPEAKER_00: The live stream today felt like the host had been binging the trython hour all week, then hit shuffle and clumsily pulled bits out at random, but in a less funny way.
[1:22:23] SPEAKER_00: I was just waiting for a fuck Mary Kill to really round it out.
[1:22:27] SPEAKER_00: Boys, I I swear to you, Dee Dee listened to the podcast all week because she kept saying stuff that only weed talked about.
[1:22:34] SPEAKER_00: And like, I didn't, she wasn't using it as her own.
[1:22:37] SPEAKER_00: She was just talking about like opinions we'd give given on the podcast and stuff like that.
[1:22:41] SPEAKER_00: And it happened like three or four times a month, just a coincidence, probably.
[1:22:44] SPEAKER_00: But then it happened so many times that I know Dee Dee listened.
[1:22:47] SPEAKER_00: So Dee Dee, shout out, don't listen to Greg.
[1:22:49] SPEAKER_00: You're doing your best.
[1:22:50] SPEAKER_00: Keep listening to the Triton now.
[1:22:52] SPEAKER_00: We're gonna do the weekly, uh, we're gonna do the daily pods in the lead up to Corona as well.
[1:22:55] SPEAKER_00: Listen to them, use as many as out of our takes as you want for your commentary that day.
[1:22:59] SPEAKER_01: They say imitation is the greatest form of flattery.
[1:23:02] SPEAKER_01: So um, quick one from Goof.
[1:23:05] SPEAKER_01: Actually, we have been getting a lot of Nick Thompson comments over the past few days in pods, and we have ignored them.
[1:23:13] SPEAKER_01: And Goof says, now can we talk about Nick Fhompson, please?
[1:23:18] SPEAKER_01: And uh yes, we've given Nick his flowers.
[1:23:21] SPEAKER_01: Great race by Nick flying the uh the Australian flag, proud.
[1:23:26] SPEAKER_01: Good work, Nick.
[1:23:27] SPEAKER_00: I've got two comments to finish it off.
[1:23:29] SPEAKER_00: Uh, one's from Gavin McGregor with the shirtless Norwegian sweeping the podium, will Fred Funk become the second favourite Triton OnlyFans account?
[1:23:37] SPEAKER_00: Uh Gavin, uh he won't.
[1:23:40] SPEAKER_00: Um, he'll become the fourth favourite because if the Norwegian trio opened an OnlyFans account together and posted even half of what they posted on Instagram over the past three months, they would be very rich men.
[1:23:52] SPEAKER_00: And the last comment, Josh Ratoli comments Zorgnotti is an absolute king.
[1:23:58] SPEAKER_00: A bloody man, Josh.
[1:24:00] SPEAKER_00: Uh Benjamin Zorgnotti is the talking point of the week.
[1:24:03] SPEAKER_00: We touched on him a little bit, but I just want to shout out Benjamin.
[1:24:07] SPEAKER_00: When he came on the podcast the other day, that might have been the best moment in the podcast's entire history.
[1:24:14] SPEAKER_00: Like he was so funny, he just started coming on and talking shit and having a laugh.
[1:24:19] SPEAKER_00: None of us know him.
[1:24:20] SPEAKER_00: It was our first time ever talking to him.
[1:24:22] SPEAKER_00: We only talked to him for that five or ten minutes that he was on.
[1:24:25] SPEAKER_00: Like, I am a fan for life, and uh and let's keep following him.
[1:24:29] SPEAKER_00: Um, okay, this is now our last little quick fire, no fence sitting way to end the show.
[1:24:37] SPEAKER_00: It was Greg's idea.
[1:24:39] SPEAKER_00: Let's really, really, really by far way too early, predict the winner of the 2026 Iron Man World Champs.
[1:24:50] SPEAKER_00: Greg, did you want to start us off?
[1:24:51] SPEAKER_00: Give it an it was your idea of how to end the show.
[1:24:54] SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and I was almost giving my boy uh Martin Van Riel a shout because I just think uh his performance is good on the weekend.
[1:25:00] SPEAKER_02: So yeah, that's that's my that's my pick.
[1:25:03] SPEAKER_02: M V R.
[1:25:04] SPEAKER_00: My pick's an easy one.
[1:25:06] SPEAKER_00: I I think Gustav Eden wins.
[1:25:08] SPEAKER_00: I think that by the time we get to Kona next year, it'll be how much does Gustav Eden win by, not does he win.
[1:25:15] SPEAKER_00: He is the all-time contender for Kona 2026.
[1:25:18] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a good one, Jack.
[1:25:20] SPEAKER_01: My pick is also, I think, a no-brainer.
[1:25:23] SPEAKER_01: It's myself, baby.
[1:25:25] SPEAKER_01: 2026 campaign starts now.
[1:25:29] SPEAKER_01: Hell yeah.
[1:25:31] SPEAKER_01: No, seriously.
[1:25:31] SPEAKER_01: I watched the um coverage and then I squeezed in a quick uh 18k run this morning, and I was like Casper Stornez out there.
[1:25:38] SPEAKER_01: I was feeling good.
[1:25:41] SPEAKER_00: Oh, that's the kind of arrogance we've uh grown to expect from Greg.
[1:25:45] SPEAKER_00: It's nice to see you, you know, getting off the fence, Apo.
[1:25:48] SPEAKER_00: I like it.
[1:25:49] SPEAKER_00: I like it.
[1:25:49] SPEAKER_00: Um, hey, boys, do you think for Kona, by the time Kona comes around, we get some pretender t-shirts made up so that we can sell them to everyone listening to the the daily pods in the lead up to Kona?
[1:26:01] SPEAKER_00: Because I I got stopped on the course probably 50 times today and asked when we were going to be doing pretender shirts.
[1:26:07] SPEAKER_00: So I think for let's do like a special Kona Pretender edition shirt um for when we do the daily pods.
[1:26:12] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, let's do it.
[1:26:13] SPEAKER_01: Because I um I love merch.
[1:26:15] SPEAKER_01: You guys know that.
[1:26:16] SPEAKER_01: Um I'm a big I'm a big fan of slinging merch.
[1:26:19] SPEAKER_01: Huge merch guys.
[1:26:21] SPEAKER_00: That is ironic that he uh he disowned Fred Funk as a friend for the fact that he was trying to sell merch.
[1:26:27] SPEAKER_00: We won't sell it for profit, we'll sell it for what we make it for, just so that people can wear it.
[1:26:30] SPEAKER_00: Uh I hate people who sell merch for profit too, actually.
[1:26:33] SPEAKER_02: Uh oh, what?
[1:26:34] SPEAKER_02: Oh, damn it.
[1:26:38] SPEAKER_00: Crass it, classic Greg, Americ, American.
[1:26:41] SPEAKER_00: How can I make as much money off this as possible so I can live in a mansion and me and Apo just content to be broke Australians?
[1:26:47] SPEAKER_00: Uh boys, this officially wraps up what is the best week of podcasting we've done here on the Trifle Now.
[1:26:53] SPEAKER_00: Seven podcasts in seven and a half days every day.
[1:26:58] SPEAKER_00: Thank you for grinding with me on this, boys.
[1:27:00] SPEAKER_00: I know that everyone listening has appreciated the amount of time that you two would have put into this.
[1:27:05] SPEAKER_00: Um, you didn't have to.
[1:27:06] SPEAKER_00: That's not what you signed up here for.
[1:27:08] SPEAKER_00: But there hasn't been one complaint all week from either of you.
[1:27:11] SPEAKER_00: In fact, we've just got closer and had so much fun.
[1:27:14] SPEAKER_00: And um, I feel like we all like the podcast more now than we did seven days ago.
[1:27:18] SPEAKER_00: What a week it's been.
[1:27:19] SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
[1:27:20] SPEAKER_01: Thanks for having me, Jack.
[1:27:21] SPEAKER_01: It's been fun.
[1:27:22] SPEAKER_01: It's been fun the banter, and uh yeah, it's gotten me invested in the race more so than I would have been.
[1:27:28] SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, it's been awesome.
[1:27:30] SPEAKER_01: Thanks for listening, everyone.
[1:27:31] SPEAKER_01: Yeah, thanks, Jack.
[1:27:32] SPEAKER_02: And uh I'm hoping maybe an Apo and I are friends now.
[1:27:35] SPEAKER_02: I'm not quite sure.
[1:27:36] SPEAKER_02: That's just that's my whole shtick for the week.
[1:27:38] SPEAKER_02: I hope that's that's that's the outcome for me.
[1:27:41] SPEAKER_00: I still think Apo likes Benjamin Zorgnotti more than you already.
[1:27:48] SPEAKER_00: All right, see you later, guys.
[1:27:49] SPEAKER_00: Uh, we'll go back to normal scheduled programming for a little bit.
[1:27:53] SPEAKER_00: Uh, but then for Kona and potentially Mar Baya, we might even have an a better surprise for Mar Baya for the 70.3 world championships in store for you.
[1:28:01] SPEAKER_00: Daily pods are coming for Kona.
[1:28:03] SPEAKER_00: If what we're planning for the Iron Man 70.3 world uh champs goes ahead, it's gonna be better than probably this and uh Kona put together.
[1:28:11] SPEAKER_00: But we'll uh we'll put a little uh pin in that and keep you updated.
[1:28:15] SPEAKER_00: Thanks again.
[1:28:16] SPEAKER_00: Thanks for the week.
[1:28:16] SPEAKER_00: We'll uh see you next week.

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