Please welcome our next guest in our « Trimes digs » section.
Alexander Hinton.
We are back in Ontario and more precisely the « old » town of Simon Whitfield, Kingston. This is the place, Alex and his entire family of triathletes (dad, sister, himself,…) call home. This super fast runner is a key player for other triathletes in the nearby RTC. RTC ????
Canada is lucky to have Regional/Provincial Training Center all across the country. In Ontario, there is 2 main streams, with the Regional Training Center in Guelph and the Bystorm Triathlon in Ottawa. Alexander is helping Craig Taylor as assistant coach and medical assistant at the RTC Guelph.
Coming from a triathlon family, everybody is practicing triathlon religiously and it was almost a natural evolution for Alex to start triathlon.
In his last year as a junior, Hinton finished third at the National Championships (Kelowna) and 16th at the Junior World Championships.
Along with many others part of the new development Team from TriCAN, Alexander will be jumping from juniors to U23, this season.
Locally, Alexander is the Ontario Junior Provincial Champion, has won many local races … with one of the most memorable … a tragic sprint finish at ITU Coteau/Soulanges (we still don’t know how the Sportstats cam made the difference between Alexander and Matt Sharpe).
Alex seems to have lots of fun at the RTC and before we let you read more about him, we would like to share this inspirational video made by Ian Donald, yet another great athlete from the RTC.
How did you start triathlon ?
I did my first Kids of Steel triathlon when I was eight. My dad had been doing them for a few years and I thought it looked pretty cool so I tried it out. From that summer on I would race a Kids of Steel each summer until I was 15 or 16 I started having a little more success, began really enjoying the sport and decided I would try and take it a little more seriously.
What are your goals for the season ?
This season I graduate from junior to U23/elite racing and am certainly excited, but also nervous about the transition. My biggest goal for this summer is to represent Canada at U-23 world championships in Beijing.
What do you keep repeating to yourself ?
I am always having to tell myself to do the dishes. They can really add up if you don’t wash them everyday!
Trimes says : thanks for the input Alex … this is about tri here 🙂
What is your strength ? According to you ! Or your favorite event (swim/bike/run) ?
My strength is definitely my running. I have been running cross country and track since I was in grade 3. Not only is it the discipline in which I am the most competent, it is also the sport in which I enjoy the most in terms of training, and get the most satisfaction from.
Kelowna 2010
Where do you see yourself in 5 years ?
Hopefully in 5 years I will have completed my BSc from the University of Guelph, and will be racing at the highest levels of our sport. My lifelong goal is to represent Canada at the Olympics so hopefully in five years I will be busting my butt trying to make the 2016 Olympic team. On a personal level, I’d like to be married with 3-4 kids.
What is your opinion about Canada vs the others ? Is there any difference between us, the USA, Europe, Australia, New-Zealand ?
I can’t compare our system to other nations, as I am not knowledgeable about athlete development programs employed around the world, but I think the system we have set up in Canada is solid. Our Kids of Steel program is increasingly popular, and the National Junior series is a great stepping-stone to elite racing. I think that as we continue to develop more athletes we will soon have the depth at the elite level of countries like Great Britain and Australia.
Long distance triathlon in your future ?
I’ll certainly race at least one Ironman before I’m done with triathlon. I’ve been to many of them cheering on my father and the environment at the events is so inspiring and exciting. It would be hard for someone to watch an Ironman and not want to be a part of the action.
3rd at Nationals
What is your usual training schedule (week during the season) ?
During the school year a common week will see our group swimming every morning, with either a ride or run session in the afternoon. We also will lift weights twice per week during the winter. When school ends in late April, the training load takes a big jump. Through the summer months we have a swim, bike and run workout almost every day; it seems like we’re training all the time! Other than race weeks, we always take Saturday off.
Your tunes for your training ?
In the dark winter months, I require pretty upbeat tunes to get me through. Usually, our group will rock out to popular dance type music. Eminem can also be really helpful toward the end of harder workouts.
Any athlete you admire ?
Being a Kingston boy myself, I’ve got to be a huge Whitfield fan! I remember running around my house as a nine year old kid pretending I was Simon Whitfield, after his dramatic win at the Sydney games.
Your moto !
Nothing comes to mind, but I like the quote, ‘dance like nobody’s watching’. It doesn’t really have any special meaning to me, but when I hear a good tune playing, sometimes I like to let loose!
