It’s no secret that here at Trimes, we are very sympathetic to athletes. In the public eye, the French Triathlon Federation is often seen as the culprit. We too, at times, have been critical of the FFtri and its decision making. However, we have always found the FTF to be open about discussing various topics that have caught the publics attention. In fact, we’ve found that in most cases, once all elements have been laid on the table, opinions tend to be less polarizing…
We’ve recently sat down with Benjamin Maze (assistant to the National Technical Director for Team France) in an attempt to further understand the FTF’s visions. Our goal here was to get down to basics and expose the facts in order to have unbiased and objective discussions.
T : The federation is often criticized in its decision making. In contrast to other federations, you seem to hand pick athletes that are first and foremost proven swimmers, thus taking the risk to not even bring athletes to the start line if you feel they won’t be competitive from the start.
BM : Indeed. A good example of this is in 2011 when we didn’t have a junior woman for the world championships. In 2012 however, Léonie finished in 2nd place. So you could say that this policy has paid off. I could even point out that it pays off even if we find ourselves in a position to conserve and protect a certain level of excellence in the younger categories while continuing to develop those within the elite categories. We are presently in a bit of a drought when it comes to the women’s elite, which has been identified for several years, but we now see the light at the end of the tunnel.
T : Last year, you excluded athletes from Team France at certain WTS events. According to these athletes, they were put under too much pressure with no room for error. They felt these were unfavourable conditions that do not go hand in hand with performance. Experience is key to being successful in WTS racing and their lack of it clearly showed in their first events…
BM : Since 2013, we’ve allowed all eligible athletes to participate to WTS events, on the condition that it be in the best interest of Team France. That means that the participation of a French athlete can not be detrimental to the race strategy of our national team members. The question regarding experience on the WTS circuit is quite interesting. Is it really beneficial for an athlete to take the start if he or she isn’t ready to perform?
While there are undeniable differences between the WCS and WTS circuits, some athletes have found success in both these series right off the hop because they had already been successful in younger categories, in continental cup races or in world cup races :
Vincent Luis – 9th place in his WCS debut in Kitzbuhel
Mario Mola – 5th in his second WCS appearance in London
Dorian Coninx – 7th in his second WTS appearance
Cassandre Beaugrand – 14th in his second WTS appearance
Simon Viain – 17th in his WTS debut
Etc.
Experience, as we see, is not always needed to be successful.
We must remember that the objective as mandated by the Ministry of Sport and the FTF is to reach Olympic and Paralympic Games success. We find ourselves in a competitive atmosphere where simple participation is not sufficient. We want to reinforce a culture based on performance and to develop winners.
Everyone who takes to the start line will be subjected to evaluation and they must accept that. This evaluation is based on athletic background (age, experience, maturity), past performances and projected potential.
T : Criterias of admissibility to World Series events for athletes not selected to Team France are more permissive than they’ve been in the past. Are we right to sense a certain adjustment in this regard?
BM : Since 2006, we’ve implemented certain standards and strategies to ensure a more objective participation in international competitions. Still, some feel they can be successful in WTS racing when results and numbers brought forward by testing (swim and run) clearly show the contrary. Over the last two years, we’ve put in an effort to be more open in the hope to alleviate some of the bad press directed at the FTF. That being said, we have to be fair to our objective and our mandate and we do not shy away from explaining this to affected athletes. Results and performance remains our main objective.
T : A number of athletes have decided to represent other nations (a practice that we see in other countries as well). I suppose that can be seen as a positive – you are victims of your own success..
BM : This especially demonstrates an important fundamental difference between a large number of athletes and the FTF. For many athletes, the dream is to participate in the Olympic or Paralympic Games. Our objective is to win one of the 6 medals handed out at the Olympic Games and one of 18 at the Paralympic Games.
France is density is also fairly high. We are the only country to have 10 athletes in the top 100 of the ITU points list. If we take only the top 45 in consideration (which equals to an allowance of three selected athletes for the games), France is on par with Spain, Great Britain and Australia (each with 4 athletes).
T : What is the FFtri’s position in regards to this. Can we foresee change in the future?
BM : Raphaël Pujol Siwane, who had participated in a European Junior Cup with Team France is now a member of team Morocco. Jessica Harrison, who had lived in France for the last 10 years turned the other way. When it comes to changing nationalities, the FTF is neither for nor against. Athletes do not belong to the FTF and we have no ambitions of limiting their possibilities and impeding their progress and development. We’re confident that what we have to offer to the athletes is sufficient enough to ensure that those who have the potential to reach the podium at the Olympic Games will stay with us in the long run.
T : What comes as a surprise with national federations is that generally, when an athlete is not selected, they are reluctant to take part of the responsibility and would rather blame it on injustice within federation politics..
BM : In which case, they are limited by their inability to factually evaluate a performance.
T : Throughout this debate, do you have the impression of being a victim of the ITU rankings? It’s a bit ironic that an athlete can be found in the top 50 without ever having ‘performed’ at the WTS level..
BM : The ITU rankings points list is a tool that gives access to international competitions. It’s not so much a goal or an objective as it is an indicative factor. When we understand it, we know that certain athletes are better suited for world cup races than WTS races. This year, we’ve noticed that Abu Dhabi (WTS) had profoundly changed the race calendar and that the level of competition at Mooloolaba and New Plymouth (WC) had suffered because of it. That is exactly why we’ve created a performance indicator (internal tool of the FTF to objectify the level of each international competition).
Alexander Bryukhankov once held the no. 1 ITU ranking without ever reaching the podium at the World Championships.
The only evaluation there is is on a world level and in the sport of triathlon, this evaluation is based on the WTS.
In this dilemma, conflicting opinions are most likely caused by different goals when it comes to performance. This all comes back to the fundamental difference between athletes that dream of participating in the Games, and the ones who dream of stepping on the podium at the Games. I don’t think I’m mistaking when I say that the Federation wants medals whereas the athletes want to progress on the circuit. ‘Divorce’ then becomes inevitable in certain cases.
One thing is sure for athletes who dream of participating in the Olympic Games wearing Team France’s colors. The only way on to the team is to demonstrate a capacity to compete for a medal and reach the podium.
T : On that note, let us shift our focus on the future. What is Team France’s actual position leading in to the Rio Olympic Games? We know of a weakness in the women’s team.. Could France follow in the USA’s footsteps, given their recent domination, and bring about changes in it’s ways of developing atheletes?
BM : The American way is to recruit among runners who have had a past in swimming. France, like many other countries, have been doing this for quite a while. There are differences in the culture of sport between France and the United States. Those differences set aside, there are a few things that we should keep in mind, numbers wise :
- 9 million / 66 million (USA vs France – population)
- 62 / 13 (USA vs France – no. of swimmers who have a 400m best time of under 4:25)
- 33 / 3 (US vs France – no. of athletes in the 200 best performances worldwide 10,000m in 2014)
Simply put, we don’t have the same resources as the Americans when it comes to available athletes. Versus more comparable nations (population wise), we are head to head with Great Britain when it comes to swimming and running performances amongst our potential young athletes.
T : Can you tell us about the specifics of the race course in Rio? It will surely influence training in the following year…
BM : We’ve already been on two trips to Rio to scout out the race course. It’s a very interesting course which will necessitate different qualities and skills from the athletes. Whoever will come out on top will be a complete triathlete.
A one loop, open-sea swim, followed by an 8 lap bike course which features a hill very similar to the one from Athens, and a flat, seaside run course. These course features are sure to make the race in Rio very exciting.
Rio being the main objective of the FTF and of the selected athletes, we will prepare according to the specificities of this particular course.
T : French athletes are not known for taking part in international squads and you guys seem to encourage them to stay within their environment and not disconnect from their world. Do you not fear that this wont be a good training environment for them? That it won’t adequately simulate the Olympic Games’ racing specificities?
BM : Actually, French athletes have taken part in international squads for a number of years now (Olivier Marceau launched this movement when he went to train with Miles Stewart’s father, Stéphanie Gros and Alexandra Cassan Ferrier followed suit by going to train with Darren Smith, David Hauss with Joël Fillol to name a few). The FTF accompanies identified athletes to ensure they have adequate and optimal training conditions et to allow them to be as successful as they can in the environment they are most comfortable with. Vincent Luis wanted to be in Reims, Maxime Hueber-Moosbrugger stayed in Alsace, Pierre Le Corre is in Montpellier, Dorian has his team in Echirolles.
Vicent is riding with cyclists in the Reims region and running with a group of athletes under the tutelage of Farouk Madacci. None of these athletes have Vicent’s triathlon pedigree, but they all excel at their particular sport which make them excellent training partners for him. Likewise, most of our triathletes have training partners that allow them to get the most out of each sport. We also organize workshops throughout the year to better prepare for the bigger events.
T : The World Series now has as many sprint distance as olympic distance races. Does that complicate your work? Since they require different abilities, how do you manage to evaluate these results?
BM : Each competition reveals certain things about the capacity of each athlete. Even though the performance model of the two distances are different, there remains many similarities. The athletes select their race calendar, but since the start of the WTS in 2009, we have put the results of the grand finale (which is an olympic distance) at the forefront of our evaluation because it is always the most competitive race since it has the most ranking points in play.
We analyze the WTS results in all its races and formats with the single goal of Rio in mind. Obviously, some athletes, such as the weaker swim/bike combinations, benefit from sprint distances.
T : Indeed. The sprints also come to your advantage because they facilitate entry for athletes in development to the world series.
BM : That’s especially true for juniors or neo U23’s. WTS sprints give them an easier road to the levels required to participate in WTS, and they can land leading roles in races much faster that way. We’ve recently witnessed this with Cassandre Beaugrand, Audrey Merle, Dorian Coninx and Raphaël Montoya and it is with this in mind that we will enter the Mixed Relay World Championships. But as long as the Olympic Games race will remain an olympic distance triathlon, the distance will be highly important for junior and U23 athletes.
T : It is said that for some of the sport’s stars, victory in Rio will be achieved by the simple fact of showing up to the start line in top form. How is the Federation going to ensure Team France’s athletes are ready come race day, and have not overdone it in preperation?
BM : A medal Olympic and Paralympic Games is our one and only goal. Medals at WTS stages and final WTS rankings is nice, but these will only be indicators of an athlete’s capacity of performing in Rio. We will be very careful in our selection athletes for the Games, and equally as careful in our accompaniment of these athletes on their path to the Games. They know we will not impose a heavy race calendar. Everyone in play knows that it is in the best interest of the Federation to have Team France’s athletes in top form come the day of the Olympic Games race.
T : How do you feel about the new WTS calendar? Is holding the World Title not a double-edged sword for the athlete in question? I mean, would it not be hard to stay in top form for such a long period of time without risking a burnout or injury?
BM : We are at a critical time in the development of triathlon as a sport. Because of the arrival of the WTS and the ITU’s financial partners, athletes can now make a living off of the sport (though not quite at the same level as football, cycling and basketball). The downside is that for this to be maintained, we must constantly feed the spectators with a quality product with more races featuring the top athletes. This olympic year is particular for several reasons :
- Athletes want to guarantee a selection for their country (WTS, WC, Continental Championships)
- Athletes want to represent their federation in Rio
- Athletes want to represent their federation in Chicago
- Athletes want to be players in the final WTS rankings
- Athletes want to perform in the 2015 test event
On top of all that, the ITU has added two races to the WTS calendar.
The key to 2015 will be to make the right choices.
T : Are we right to think that athletes show up to WTS events at different levels of form, adapted to the goals and selection criterias of their federations? If that’s the case, does it not become hard to evaluate athletes in comparison to the competition?
BM : Each federation has its specific selection process and criterias for the Rio Olympic Games and these specificities ended up playing a big role on how they target every race on the calendar. The WTS races promoters have an understanding of that and it is for this reason that they are not very happy about the Rio Games test event that will take place this year. Most countries are expecting their athletes to perform in Chicago and Rio and by consequence, the quality of some of the competition at some of the other events on the calendar will suffer.
In order to be race ready on August 2nd and on the 19th and 20th of September, you must prepare. Racing is inevitably an integral part of preparation. Each race and performance of an athlete must be evaluated in function of this preparation.
2014, with the Commonwealth Games, was atypical for Athletes targeting Glasgow.
T : What can we expect from Team France this season? How close are you to Gomez and the Brownlees?
BM : 2014 was an exceptional year on all levels for the FTF. We had great results in our younger categories (World Junior and U23 Champions, and 3 of 6 medals for the Juniors and the World Championships) and Paralympic Triathletes (2 medals including 1 World Champion). We had numerous injuries and illness’ in the male elite category (Vidal, Hauss, Le Corre).
In 2015, we expect more success in the men’s elite category and we’re off to a good start with the early season success of Luis, Le Corre and Bourseaux. We expect to see more constant top 6 results from our elite men.
The London Games medalists in the men’s field are some of the sports greatest athletes. Some Team France athletes are getting quite close to their level (Luis has beaten the Brownlee’s before) and we do not feel that Le Corre’s performance in Auckland was a flash in a pan. Roughly 500 days before Rio, we feel we’re right on track when it comes to our objectives.
Javier and Alistair have been world class for a number of years. For them (and others for that matter), it’ll be about staying injury free.
As for the women, we’ve known for a number of years that this would be a difficult Olympiad. On top of the retirement of Jessica and Carole, we’ve seen a number of women leave the sport. For the women, like the men, we’re favoring athletes that show potential for three Olympiads (2016, 2020, 2024). We would be doing ourselves an injustice if we restructured our methodology simply because we are in a period where we have few athletes. On the contrary, this is allowing us to concentrate on the new generation of triathletes (Merle, Beaugrand, Garabedian, Bremond, Morier and Lejeune) and the Identification and Accompaniment of Emerging Triathletes (IATE).