Daley drills City PM team a final time before triathlon
TIME is fast running out for the Laureus / City PM team preparing for the London leg of the Dextro Energy ITU Triathlon in Hyde Park at the weekend.
So, with valuable funds for charity at stake, the athletes were certain to make the most of the recent final group training session – taken by none other than Olympic gold-winning decathlete Daley Thompson.
“From the very start I told the guys it wouldn’t be easy and, today of all days at our final session before the race, they will agree that it has been a real challenge,” Laureus World Sports Academy Member Daley said after the session at Richmond Park.
“But, despite the hard work they’ve been up against, I’m really proud of the team. They’ve stood up to the challenge and each can say that they have put in as much as they possibly could.”
Daley believes this could have something to do with the participants’ reasons for running in the City PM / Laureus team. He added: “The team are clearly passionate about sport and I am certain that running to raise as much money as possible for a charity such as the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, a charity committed to using sport to help children across the world, has been a real driving factor when the training has got tough.”
Places in the team were open to anyone, meaning people with a range of abilities have been working together – which has not been a bad thing at all as far as Daley is concerned.
“It’s no big secret,” he said, “but it’s the commitment to your goals that’s key. Whether the guys can run a mile in five minutes or 30, it’s the passion and hard work they put in that really matters to me when I’m working with the team.”
And, for Daley, this hard work has double (or even triple) the importance when it comes to the nature of triathlon.
“The triathlon means no shortcuts. It’s not enough to be a good runner or cyclist or swimmer, you need to handle all three or your race will go to pieces,” he said.
“What really matters, whether you’re an occasional triathlete or a great Olympian, is that the process is an intense one and easy solutions simply don’t exist. I really hope the team do as well as their training deserves and I’m sure they will.”
For the first time this year, City PM and Laureus have teamed up to offer 25 readers the opportunity to take part in the London Dextro Energy Triathlon on 6 August to raise funds for the Laureus Sport for Good Foundation. To find out more www.Laureus.com and follow on Twitter @LaureusSport