Alex Yee says winning a first world title this weekend would be a significant next step in his development as an athlete as he bids to put a couple of near misses behind him.
He achieved a lifetime ambition by winning Olympic gold this summer after that epic battle with arch rival Hayden Wilde in Paris as he became the most decorated Olympic triathlete of all time.
In the aftermath of that he admitted he was “mentally tired” but he was back firing on all cylinders with a brilliant all-round display at WTCS Weihai last time out and when we caught up with him this week ahead of Sunday’s showdown at the Grand Final in Torremolinos, he was calm, focussed and relishing the challenges ahead.
Putting on a show
He has never had a better chance of being crowned world champion – a top-six finish will be enough to seal it, though that definitely isn’t his mindset going into the race as he told us: “I won’t be [thinking like that]. I’ve fallen into the trap before of thinking about the places and what’s going on with this iteration and that iteration – and that doesn’t work for me. This is an isolated race and I’ll just race it the best I can.
“There’s obviously a few different bits about this one compared to the other ones. It’s a little bit more technical on the bike. It’s a bit more of a choppy sea swim than it was in Weihai. So it’s about just racing the course specifics, treating it as its own race, not as a holistic series, because that’s fundamentally how I race well.
One day, one race and I’ve just got to do that four times in a year!
“And that comes with the approach of, yes there is a lot of pressure on this weekend but I’m just going to go out there and enjoy it and go through my processes. That’s kind of what I did in Weihai and it worked out really well. So hopefully I can just continue that momentum and race with a smile on my face and put on a show.”
‘The ultimate consistent athlete’
Yee has a perfect record in terms of his best three counting races going into Torremolinos, with the Olympics victory bookended by wins in Weihai and Cagliari and producing those stellar performances on a consistent basis is exactly what makes a world champion.
Asked what it would mean to add a world title to an Olympic triumph, he replied: “It’s not so much that it would be added to Olympic gold this year, I think it’s more because it has been something which has eluded me so many times.
“I really count the Olympics as the ultimate one day, one race, and the world title as the ultimate consistent athlete over our season. And I think I can put together really good one day, one races. But I think in terms of consistency over the whole year, I’ve probably yet to prove that. So it would be special to be able to do it all in one season because I do feel like I’m developing as an athlete.”
Quest for the perfect race
And while a break later this year will be welcome it sounds like there’s no resting on his laurels, with the desire to keep progressing as strong as ever.
He added: “I think there are gains to be made everywhere, if I’m being honest. I think there’s lots we can work towards. There were a lot of conversations about sub 29 being a consistent thing on the run and I think that definitely is a possibility at some point.
“But that actually might not come from doing lots of extra run volume or training. It might just come from being a stronger biker and a stronger swimmer and the benefit that could have when it comes to the run. I’m starting to find that I’m able to do little bits on the bike and the swim and those little improvements have meant that I’m able to access a little bit more of my potential on the run, which I think is exciting.”
And the worrying news for his rivals is the quest for the perfect race also continues: “Yeah, I still feel like I’m edging closer to a perfect race, but am definitely not there yet.
I think winning the Olympic Games was an amazing moment, an amazing feeling, but it wasn’t my perfect race – and that’s exciting.
“It still gets me out of bed and I still feel like I did in Tokyo [when he won individual silver]. I have that energy to get back and to keep improving and getting better. And I still feel young at the moment, so hopefully that can last!”
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