This week’s Fast Friday features Storm Cooper, a young triathlete currently at TuksSport High School. He is 14 years old and started trying out the sport of triathlon two years ago. In that time he has made a lot of progress with regards to his performance, as well as his attitude.
The start of coaching
When I first started coaching Storm, he was a very shy and quiet boy, but that soon changed when his confidence levels grew. He likes to challenge himself with his training and always gives 110% in all the sessions I set for him.
It is this attitude that I believe will get him far in the sport. An example of this is when he competed in the National Duathlon Championships this year.
A hiccup at the Championships
Training for the National Duathlon Championships went well for Storm, and he was going into the race with the right mindset – to race hard and have fun doing so.
Unfortunately the race start did not go according to plan for him…
As the gun went off, he tripped and fell. This caused him to lose contact with the leaders. Instead of pushing hard and sprinting to get back to them, he kept his cool, stayed calm and stuck to the race plan.
Sticking to the plan
If he had gone hard to try to catch up to the leaders, he most likely would have blown up on the bike and struggled with the final run. By keeping his composure and sticking to the race plan he managed to gain a few positions and make the second pack after the end of the first run.
The rest of the race went according to plan but unfortunately the leaders were too far ahead for him to catch them and fight for a podium position.
In the end, he finished in 8th position – not what we came for but valuable experience was earned and it will be a race that he will never forget.
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