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JAY PRASUHN: MACCA FORGES A DEFENSE: A CHAT WITH HAWAII IRONMAN CHAMP CHRIS MCCORMACK
Jay Prasuhn
June 26, 2008
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(photo: Jay Prasuhn)
Holed up in the tiny French town of Niederbronn, cooking dinner alone and watching Euro 2008 soccer coverage in French, Chris McCormack is definitely not in his element. Chris likes to talk. To anyone, A lot. For the gregarious Australian, the isolation is equivalent to solitary confinement. Thank goodness, the local French triathlon club that has been hosting him is having him out for dinner on this, his last night in France. “There is absolutely nothing to do here—I cannot wait to have dinner out!” McCormack says. “It’s been a long, quiet period, so I’m looking forward to getting out, eating at a restaurant and not cooking for myself.”
Of course, the isolation is by design. Less talking means more work getting done for the current Hawaii Ironman world champion. Better training. Sharper skills. He’s already started the year solidly by winning Wildflower, but this stint in Europe is part of McCormack’s summer routine leading up to his European Tour, this year with two key stops in Germany: one in Frankfurt July 6 for the European Ironman Championships at Ironman Germany, the other the following weekend in Roth at the Roth Challenge on July 13.
Well, the tour will go on, provided German passport agents let him into the country. When you consider that he stopped the country’s recent spate of Hawaii Ironman glory. And considering that he verbally disgraced two of the country’s iconic champions: Normann Stadler and Faris Al Sultan. He may be persona non grata around those Deutch-speaking parts of the world.
Or perhaps not. Perhaps it’s water under the bridge. We had a chance to chat with Macca just before his back-to-back races in Germany, discussing how he’s now received by the German media, how he gets along with his verbal adversaries of two years ago, and his plans to defend his world Ironman title this October in Kona.
RBA: Your back-to-back program to do Ironman Germany and the Roth Challenge is not unique, but it’s still a challenge. Especially when you consider that the Ironman fields Normann Stadler, Faris Al Sultan, defending race champ Timo Bracht, Cameron Brown, Eneko Llanos, while Roth fields Torbjorn Sindballe, Chris McDonald, Kieran Doe, Stephan Vuckovic and Thomas Hellriegel. Nothing comes easy in either. Does one become an “A” race? As I understand it, doing these back-to-back doesn’t have anything to do with trying to win both.
McCormack: No, Kona is always the focus, I won’t be trying to win both. Germany is first, so it will be my focus, though Roth is still important. Ironman Germany will be the usual guys, and they have a young German brigade. After Kona, Frankfurt will be the most solid Ironman you’re gonna get.
I usually start training a week later from any Ironman, so Roth will just be a big training session. But they’re both pretty even in that in either one, if you have an off day, you could come third, or you could come seventh. They’re that deep.
RBA: How eager are you to head to Germany in a day as you prepare for the races?
McCormack: Oh, I’m just looking forward to eating out instead of cooking for myself, watching English TV or renting movies in the hotel, having breakfast in a buffet. It’ll be good to get in, freshen up and relax the mind.
RBA: While one race does not make or define a career, it seems as though much of your public perception prior to winning Kona last year was based on how you did in Kona. Not on how you have an ITU World Cup title, or an ITU World Championship title. Or for that matter wins at Alcatraz, L.A. and Chicago. How has the German media received you after having finally won in Kona?
McCormack: They’ve been pretty good. I got to meet a lot of them last year in Kona, and they were like “wow, you’re not a bad guy, we thought you were really arrogant, but you’re not cocky.” And I was like “I know.. it’s just a game!” Now, they’re quite warm to me. I did a lot of media with them when I first got here and will a bit before and during the press conference. After that, it’s game over.
But it’s been very good. I understand it’s always hard to come to Germany and race Germans, and the press is very into them—they expect good things from them. What’s interesting is that the Germans that are successful at the moment don’t handle the pressure as well as the (Jurgen) Zacks and (Thomas) Hellriegels and (Lothar) Leders used to. Those guys, they used to love that, loved being the center of attention. And they’d respond by winning Ironman Germany, Ironman Roth all the time. This new breed, they don’t like it much. Against the old brigade like Zack and Hellriegel, it used to be difficult to come here and race. I think now, with Faris and Normann and Timo, the German media and German people expect a German winner. And that’s a lot of pressure those guys don’t want. Then that flips to me. The German media asks me “do you think you’ll be able to handle the pace of the Germans on the bike?” I just say “we’ll see on race day!”
RBA: That brings up an interesting juxtaposition: going in as the Ironman world champion, yet being seen as an underdog.
McCormack: “That’s how it always is when I come to Germany. At Roth, I’ll win it, and the next year, I’m the underdog. Then you win and come back the next year, and you’re the underdog again. I’m like “jeez, what’s it take? I’m winning the race and you still won’t back me!” It’s just how it is. And these Ironman races here compared to Kona are fast Ironmans. They’re always won in well under 8:10. Last year, Timo went 8:04 or something. Fast, fast fast. But yeah, I guess if I was in Australia, the media would be backing me. There’s just a deep German pride. It’s great.
RBA: Has your training adjusted at all after Kona? And have you consulted with Mark Allen in how to script your follow-up season to your first win in Kona in order to defend? After all, defending in Kona is a big ask only three have accomplished.
McCormack: I’ve been talking a bit to Mark. After these races, I’ll go and speak with him a bit, have a chat. Not a lot different. I had a lot longer break than I’ve had before, on Mark’s advise. This race will have a lot more speed and a lot less endurance, which I’m a bit apprehensive about. I’m quite lean at the moment and that makes me a bit apprehensive. And I’ve only ridden six hours twice during my build-up. But Mark seems to think I should keep up my speed early in the season, like a reverse periodization, then go to Boulder for the heavy Ironman base block. I can’t do the intensity in Boulder, so I’m doing it now, getting my speed doing hard, fast Olympic-distance races. I believe I can work well at an Ironman like Germany off that kind of workload, piggybacking off my Hawaii workload from seven, eight months ago.
And yeah, only Dave (Scott), Mark (Allen) and Tim (DeBoom) have been able to (defend a Hawaii title). But what does it take to do it? That’s why I talk to Mark. I’m set to do the change in training. It has been interesting.
RBA: And how have the German athletes received you after Kona, particularly those you had a dust-up with in Kona in 2006: Normann Stadler and Faris Al Sultan. I recall you and Faris had a verbal banter in Dubai as well, after Kona.
McCormack: I spoke with Normann after the race, and he was very, very nice. I spoke to him with my father after the presentation last year. We’ve never been tight anyway, but it was very, very amicable. And Faris? I don’t know him. I mean, he won Kona, but give me something else he’s won. He got his butt kicked in Schliersee—he ran 40 minutes and Kris Gemmel ran 34. I’m like, “c’mon.” He got his ass kicked at St. Croix, he got his butt kicked at St. Anthony’s. He just keeps getting his butt kicked. Then he goes to Malaysia and beats up on Petr Vabrousek, who’s done his eighth Ironman of the year. Faris is good, but he ain’t great. I have more fear for an Eneko Llanos or a Cameron Brown than I do for Faris Al Sultan. I think what it is is he can’ come back. And when it comes to running, I kick his butt. Cameron Brown? I know that bloke’s gonna run a 2:45 marathon. Faris will run 2:55 if he has a great day, maybe three hours. Timo Bracht will run sub- 2:50, so he’s dangerous.
The way these German races tend to pan out is, groups come together on this rolly-polly bike course, someone tends to attack at 150k, usually Normann or Stefan Holzner. They get away, it becomes a race to catch them on the run. Cameron caught them two years ago, Timo caught them last year.
RBA: Who do you look at as your main threats at Frankfurt?
McCormack: Cameron Brown and Eneko Llanos. Guys like Llanos, they’re dangerous. He did Lanzarote—friggin hard Ironman—last year, then finished second at Roth, then eighth in Kona. This year he doesn’t have Lanzarote in his legs. I out-sprinted him at Wildflower. He’s been kicking everyone’s ass in Spain, won the Challenge race there. Now he’s coming to Germany. I’ve got a gut feeling, he’s gonna be good. The Spanish are clever, he’s got a few Ironmans in his legs, and he’s 30—a good age. They’re the guys I’m worried about, not Faris.
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