The recent announcement of the South African Commonwealth Games team was met with a variety of reactions. As with the selection of many a national sports team, the ensuing inclusions and omissions do create much discussion, be it in the media, among the athletes affected or within the general sporting public.
For triathlete Kate Roberts though, selection to compete in Glasgow 2014 brought about great relief, not to mention a validation of sorts. Relief in a sense that her recovery from a lingering foot injury signalled a return to top-flight competition; validation in that she has retained her place in a sport that she has pursued professionally for over a dozen years. As with many elite athletes though, current form and notoriety is but only a snapshot of an immensely long journey to the top. Each of these guys and girls has made countless sacrifices in pursuit of their respective sporting goals, their commitment not limited to athletic prowess alone.
In late 2008, Kate Roberts decided to invest in the London Olympics. After a successful period culminating in her qualification and competing in the Beijing Games that year, Roberts wanted to explore her limits and maximise her athletic potential. Achieving this meant moving out of her familiar home surroundings and immersing herself in a coaching program nothing short of world class.
“Joining Darren Smith’s training squad was a massive investment for me,” explains Roberts of her move to one of world triathlon’s foremost training squads. “I really needed the guidance and personal attention that Darren provided at the time.”
Darren Smith is one of the world’s leading triathlon coaches and an expert in the pursuit of high performance. Attention to detail and total commitment are prerequisite to maintaining a place in his exclusive stable, where his innate ability in transforming an athlete from a national to world class level is evident by his track record. While the Australian’s coaching style is not necessarily for everyone, Smith’s hands-on approach speaks for itself through his results, and this is what Roberts felt she needed in her quest for reaching the next level.
“Being part of a training camp-type atmosphere definitely has its benefits,” says Roberts of the merits of total commitment. “Living and training in such an environment allows an athlete to maximise his or her potential through total focus, free from distraction.”
The term “training” took on a new meaning for Roberts, who spins many a yarn of her time divided between the Smith’s bases in Canberra and Davos.
“We were based in Canberra from December to April, moving to Davos for the European summers,” recalls Roberts. “From ridiculously long rides in the Swiss Alps to race simulation in Black Mountain in Australia, I could write a book about the challenges of training over that time. We even did three hours of running drills in the midday sun on one occasion; we were all burnt to smithereens the next day!”
Tales of marathon training sessions aside, one of the spinoffs that can occur in such a Spartan environment is the strong friendships that are forged, particularly among the female athletes. Whilst the athletes are competing against each other on the race course, those who train in the same squad often form a bond through the shared hardship of enduring an Olympic campaign. This sense of togetherness is quite commonplace in many sports, something which Roberts thinks was key to her time with the ‘D-squad.’
“We are still close,” says Roberts of her training partners pre-London 2012, which included the likes of Barbara Riveros, Anne Haug, Lisa Norden, Vicky Holland and Sarah Groff. “While it was a tough time physically, mentally and financially, I really do feel privileged to have spent an extended period with those girls. It was a special time. The highs and lows of those few years together bonded us like no other.”
One of the unheralded - yet critical - periods of any Olympic cycle is the year immediately following the previous Games. For the medal winners and also-rans alike, many athletes struggle to attain the same level of hunger and motivation. Irrespective of their level, the “post-Olympic blues” affects each individual in different ways. In triathlon at least, some athletes move on to the longer distances, content with what they have achieved in their short-distance careers. Others retire from the sport all together, the Olympics signalling the pinnacle of their sporting goals. Then there are those who commit to another four-year cycle, intent on maintaining - and mostly improving - their stature within the uber-competitive hotbed that is the ITU World Series. Whilst the latter example certainly applied to Roberts between the Beijing and London Olympiads, 2013 proved somewhat of a tough year for her, athletic performance being but one aspect of this adjustment period.
“It was difficult to find the same spark last year,” admits Roberts, who sensed a shift in the dynamics of the training squad as well as in her coaching relationship with Smith. “Most of my friends had left the squad and I felt somewhat isolated. An added dimension was my inability to train at the levels of previous years, which was frustrating for both Darren and me.”
Coaching relationships are not infinite. In fact, it is quite rare that an athlete stays with one coach for their entire career. Some athletes have acknowledged that certain coaches are good for specific periods of their lives, lending credence to the evolution of the individual. And just as what worked one year might not necessarily be the right mix for the next, acknowledging this shift in one’s perspective can take a while to identify; indeed a case of moving with the times so to speak.
“I also felt like it was just time to come home,” says Roberts, acknowledging that a touch of homesickness was a contributing factor to her relocation to South Africa. “After being away for so long, it took a while for me to decide where I wanted to be based and with whom I would train with.”
For Roberts, the emergence of the University of Pretoria’s High Performance Centre proved her destination of choice, more specifically under the tutelage of the well-known sports scientist Lindsey Parry. Training with a squad of predominately younger male triathletes has been refreshing for Roberts, who sheds some light on the differing attributes of elite male and female athletes.
“Women generally put their complete trust in a coach; what the coach says is gospel. Guys on the other hand are more difficult to micro-manage, where attention to detail can actually be detrimental given their genetic makeup and personalities. Darren was very hands-on and accompanied us on many of our training sessions, often riding a mountain bike next to us while we ran. Lindsey is less structured and encourages intuition, allowing the guys more freedom in their schedules. Various key sessions are to be attended at specific times, but he gives them a freer reign as to decide on the other “fill-in-the-gaps” workouts.”
And how does the experienced Roberts fit in with a group of up and coming triathletes?
“It has been great so far,” she confirms adding that her background and results do lend a certain amount of respect from her younger peers. “Being the oldest member of the squad means I can help the guys through my years of experience on the international circuit. A bit of guidance here and there goes a long way in negotiating the challenges of pursuing the Olympic dream.”
Mentoring younger athletes is a potential role that Roberts thinks she could fulfill once her racing days are over. The experience gained from two consecutive - and largely self-funded - Olympic campaigns is invaluable in the greater scheme of things and is something that she feels is lacking in South African triathlon at the moment.
“There is so much more to an Olympic campaign than just results,” says Roberts. “I feel that my own mistakes would not have to be experienced by other South Africans intent on representing their country were an effective transparency and guidance structure be in place.
“There is a two year window for qualification. The best approach would be to maximise one’s points tally as early in this period as possible, thus eliminating the last minute scramble for the selection criteria in the Olympic year. Why add more stress? Believe me; I've been to races solely to gain enough qualification points when it would have been in my better interests to be at home training.”
In tandem with early points accumulation is the effective and timely sourcing of sponsors. Any Olympic campaign costs money and effective financial backing does allow for better sleep at night, something which Roberts has experienced first-hand on numerous occasions.
“I've managed to scrape by with a combination of federation funding, loyal sponsors and prize money,” says Roberts, who admires those athletes who have achieved stardom against overwhelming odds. “Richard Murray is an athlete who I really admire and who has succeeded on very little backing in his first few years. Everything he has now was earned the hard way.”
Not that Roberts is resentful of those athletes with well-funded national federations; far from it, in fact. For her though, it is more a question of balance, where the athletes have what they need, without being spoilt with unnecessary bling and hand-holding. It is just case of creating the ideal channels for South African triathletes to thrive.
With the Commonwealth Games now firmly in her sights, Roberts can now focus on honing her own form at her Pretoria base. With her foot injury now a thing of the past, she was hoping for a strong performance at the London stop of the ITU World Series. Unfortunately a mechanical issue slowed her somewhat, preventing her from competing to her full potential. A great second place finish the following weekend in Blenheim salvaged her trip north somewhat, allowing her the luxury of preparing for Glasgow 2014 in peace and quiet. Not that the Friendly Games is intended to be her swansong from international competition.
“The Cape Town World Series race was my main aim in 2014,” reveals Roberts, whose ailments prevented her from displaying her talents on home soil. “I was really gutted not to be there but definitely want to make up for it next year.”
