US triathlon superstar Sam Long says “you’re really soft” taunt from an Age Grouper transformed him

Sam Long says his victory at IRONMAN Eagleman 70.3 earlier this month transformed him as a triathlete.

The Big Unit made it two wins on the bounce on June 8 after his victory at 70.3 Chattanooga, and has since raced the Vancouver T100 as well, finishing 11th.

But in a new YouTube Video looking back at his Eagleman triumph, Long says being branded “really soft” by a mystery fellow runner in Maryland could be a defining moment in his career.

An ‘intense moment’ for the ‘Big Unit’

He said: “The defining moment of the race. The moment I mentally found myself, was on the run. I had completed one lap. It was an intense moment. I was actually getting some negative cheers.

“It was my first instance of getting negative cheers in the sport of triathlon. It was actually kinda cool. Like back to being a football player and things are being said to you.

“Anyways, at this moment I was told by another athlete in the race, an Age Grouper we were passing: ‘You’re really soft’. That ignited my brain. This was the defining moment of the whole race and woke me up to my senses.

“I know it’s just a comment someone says but I think I use these things in a race to get any edge I can get. I found my belief as a runner.”

Long was going toe-to-toe with fellow American Trevor Foley at the time – and admits he was suffering from a weird inferiority complex before hitting top gear to finish 26 seconds ahead of his rival and secure the win.

Long suffered from self-doubt

He said: “The first 10k of that run I was having self-doubt. I was running with a guy who got a full scholarship in college, when I wasn’t able to. I tore my MCL in a ski accident and wasn’t able to hit the time.

“All this time I’ve had to balance this weight of thinking I wasn’t good enough to run in college, maybe therefore I’m not a true runner.

“I was going up against that in the first lap. This was a defining experience that I needed to continue my transformation as a triathlete. Now I realise these run battles are pretty fun and what it’s all about. What you want to live for.”

Long, who also says his family played a big part in his Eagleman win, is actually the number one-ranked US triathlete in the world. And he continues to show up regularly on what is a brutal race schedule.

“Build the house”

He said: “Durability is probably the most important but most under-considered thing in triathlon. Because we have single-day events we tend to look at just a single day performance.

“But with our expanding calendar and schedule, being durable and being able to race week after week at a high level is incredibly valuable. It’s such a skill. And it’s something you can train. You can train for this.

“You can build the house the proper way. I did four races in five weeks and in all of them I put out a high-quality effort. That’s what I take from this block of races. That’s a real skill.”