Sam Long has revealed he has parted company with coach Ryan Bolton and is now coaching himself.
The 26-year-old has been working with Bolton for the last four years but decided that a “change of pace” was needed.
Long’s decision to train himself got off to a winning start at IRONMAN 70.3 Indian Wells earlier this month.
‘Less is more’ approach
Speaking in his post-race update on his YouTube channel (video embedded below), Long admitted he is taking the ‘less is more’ approach.
He explained: “The biggest change coming into this race after Arizona, I decided that I needed a change in my coaching.
“I have been trained by Ryan Bolton for the last four years, he has been a great coach for me, he helped my development massively.
“But I decided that I needed a new change, a change of pace, so I have been coaching myself for the last few weeks.
“And the goal of this race was to teach myself that I can do well with much less volume, so I did the least amount of training that I have done in a long time, and clearly it seemed to work out.
“So I am looking forward to continuing that development going down the road.”
Eventful season
Looking back at 2022, Long acknowledges that it has been a rollercoaster of a year for himself, mixed with a lot of highs and some lows.
But a period of rest and recuperation is now on the cards for him.
“It is great to put the last two months behind me in a way.
“It is off-season, me and Lara [girlfriend and fellow triathlete Lara Gruden] are probably going to Cabo at an all-inclusive resort next week, then going home for family over the holidays, a little ski trip, three weeks totally off.
“I am not sure that I will touch my bike, I am not sure that I’ll touch my running shoes, I am really going to enjoy this, it has been a long season for me.
“Twelve races, I kicked it off with the first race of the season there in Miami with a win.
“Four wins for the year, seven podiums for the year, hit by a car, multiple big controversies at the Collins Cup, at 70.3 Worlds, immense back-pain – I have overcome a lot and I could not be happier with my season as a whole.”
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