Sound Bites From The IM Mont-Tremblant Pro Panel
The field has drawn a surprisingly deep field for a full Ironman this late in the season, and here’s what some of the top pros had to say.
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This Sunday’s Subaru Ironman Mont-Tremblant will serve as the Ironman North American Championship, and with it 4,000 points in the Kona Pro Rankings and share of $125,000 prize purse. The field has drawn a surprisingly deep field for a full Ironman this late in the season, and here’s what some of the top pros had to say at a press conference on Friday.
Liz Blatchford (GBR)
2013 Ironman Cairns champ, multiple Ironman 70.3 champ
“This was actually sort of a last-minute decision for me. Originally I’d planned to go for Vegas this year, and then I just sat down and decided that I would rather go to Kona. So for me to do that, I needed to get some more points, and this race was the perfect opportunity.”
“The training for Ironman and 70.3 I feel is quite different, so yeah, I changed my training the last month or so, doing longer rides and longer runs.”
Rebekah Keat (AUS)
Two-time Ironman champion (2007 Australia, 2010 Louisville)
“It wasn’t as late a decision for me to decide to do this race. Obviously I needed points as well—I’m ranked 37th and Kona’s always the big goal for me every year, and this is actually my first race of the entire season, and I chose Mont-Tremblant, and you can see why. It’s just beautiful. I’ve checked out the course, and it’s one of the most beautiful courses I’ve ever seen. I’m really looking forward to it.”
“I can’t complain—I saw the run yesterday, and it’s mostly on trails, which I love—it’s a little bit easier on the legs, so it’s gonna be exciting.”
Erika Csomor (HUN)
Multiple Ironman champion (Switzerland, Arizona, Los Cabos, Austria)
“I didn’t come for points—I came for a good race, and I saw this bike course and especially this weather was something for me. And here, I think this race is a bit different than in Europe, so I’m looking for a challenge because [there are] lots more strong girls here. So I prefer racing to training. After like 20 years, I find [it] difficult [to have] motivation for have training, so I’m just racing a lot.”
Mary Beth Ellis (USA)
Multiple Ironman champion, including 2013 Ironman France, fifth in 2012 Ironman World Championship
“I’d love to get the [North American champion] title, but I think these girls are going to have something to say about it though. I’ve been trying to this year pick courses that really appeal to me, so I had the opportunity to do Ironman France, which is a course I’ve always wanted to do, so I did that. And this course, just looking at the profile—I haven’t gotten out to see it yet—but I’m just so excited for the race. It’s in a great location, and it looks like we’re going to have great spectator support from the community. And to, just yeah, I can’t wait to race, and if I get the title, that would be icing on top of it.”
“I think Ironman is really one of those unique events where it’s definitely the athlete versus him or herself as much as it is the competitors. And I’m just going to go out there and try to get the most out of myself, and if I can win that’s great, but if I finish fifth, and if I’ve gotten the most out of myself on the day, then that’s a success as well.”
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Bert Jammaer (BEL)
Two-time Ironman Lanzarote champion (2008, 2009)
[Dropped out of Ironman Frankfurt due to a technical in July] “My big goal is to race in Hawaii and at that point [when a tech van didn’t show up], I think the race was over for me. I could finish 15th or 20th place, and that wouldn’t be enough points for Hawaii, so that’s why I’m here.”
“I did the course, and it’s beautiful, clean roads. I think it suits me. It’s not all climbing—it’s all up and down. I love it here.”
Luke Bell (AUS)
2013 Ironman Australia champion, multiple Ironman 70.3 champion
[On winning his first Ironman title this year] “Ironman Australia, Port Macquarie, it’s where I began the sport back when I was—12 years ago, at 22 or 23 years of age. So to have family and friends there at your home race, and the race that was my first ever Ironman. It was a fantastic result. … I finally ticked the box.”
“It’s interesting. People talk Kona points and everything else, but actually after last year, and talking to quite a few people, everyone said it was such a beautiful area and an amazing event to come to, so actually January I planned to come and race here, so it’s been in the schedule all along. I planned to do the championship races this year, and Melbourne being one of them in my hometown didn’t go to plan as expected, but this was always on the calendar. … It’s a race with a family vacation.”
Paul Amey (GBR)
2013 Ironman Texas champion
“I’ve had a few troubles after Texas—had a virus for a couple of months, and then I tried to come back into it and then ended up twisting my ankle. So I haven’t really gotten the preparation that I would like coming into a race with so many good guys racing, but I think I had a good base from the training I had done before Texas, so I’m hoping that will carry me through and try to get a good performance.”
“I think for the guys here it’s going to be a close race—it’s going to be a little more of a tactical race, especially for me trying to save a little bit of energy on the bike for the run. But, you know, I have to take the race as it goes during the second lap of the bike.”
Romain Guillaume (FRA)
Defending Ironman Mont-Tremblant champion
“The pro field is more competitive than last year, but it’s a great challenge for me. … My coach and I, we don’t plan to go to Kona, so I’m not looking for points or for something like this—I’m here because I want to try to defend my title, and the bike course fits me perfectly and people here are so nice to me, they’re all speaking French, so it’s good for me!”
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