"An Ironman is a very long day"

Javier Gomez Noya (March 25, 1983, Basel) became a five -time winner of the triathlon world championship and in Madrid he gave a “masterclass” open to the winners of the Movistar Likes promotion. In it, guests had the opportunity to meet and practice with Gómez Noya.

After that masterclass, Gomez Noya He attended Mundo Deportivo in an interview where he spoke about his next challenge, to win the World Cup in Kona (Hawaii) in October, although to land there, he would have to play an Ironman in July or August in order to be qualified. He also spoke about his recovery after being transmitted by the coronavirus which forced him to stop his preparations.

First of all, how are you after the coronavirus?

I’m much better, I have a relatively high fever with covid, many symptoms and I hope that after overcoming it, I will gradually return to activity, but the truth is I’m very tired. Analytics provided unique values, everyone was unique. Muscle pain, joint pain, I had to take it calmly and not force anything. After talking to the doctors and listening to the body, I decided to rest. Now I am training almost normally and am slowly shaping up. Before the World Cup in Utah, I was very good and the coronavirus somewhat delayed my plans.

Come on, it came at the worst time …

Yes, he had months of training away from home. I was in Mallorca looking for better weather than Galicia, I did two concentrations in the Sierra Nevada and right at the end of the last concentration in the Sierra Nevada, when I was driving to Madrid to fly to the United States the next day, Started I find myself bad at driving a car. I arrived in Madrid with a few tenths of a fever and a covid coming out.

How do you define what Ironman is?

An Ironman is a very long day (laughs). The competition is very long, very tough, but it’s a question of preparation that you do first. It’s a preparation of months, very complete and in the competition you have to show everything you’ve done in training. Food is a very important factor, it is almost the fourth discipline: swimming, cycling, running and eating and hydration during racing.

What are the differences between triathlon and Ironman?

The logical and obvious are the kilometers. In terms of preparation, the bike is different in that it is a very long test, 180 kilometers and a time trial bike goes with a goat, while in the Olympic distance it has a road bike and it is allowed to go on wheels In addition, you will spend approximately four and a half hours cycling, which is more than half the test and the bike takes on more importance than an Olympic distance test. The role of food in the distance is very important and the preparation is different. It’s the same sport but it seems like you’re preparing for a different sport.

Mentally it must also be very different …

Yes, you need to change the chip. It’s like someone running 1,500 meters in athletics and suddenly going a longer distance and preparing for a marathon. You need to change the chip when it comes to training and dealing with testing. You have to change everything, in the way you train and deal with careers.

Before being in the World Cup in Hawaii, you have to qualify by doing an Ironman, right?

Yes, the problem of not being able to participate in the World Cup forces me to qualify. The idea is to do it at the end of June, beginning of August, I have not yet decided which one. It depends on how the postcovid has evolved and how I feel.

Going to a place like Hawaii not on vacation, but to make an Ironman …

(laughs) Man, usually the places that invite you to vacation are not good places to compete. Too hot, too humid. It’s not a pleasant place to compete, it’s a place to relax, but good. If I go it is to run, not to see them. It would be hard for me not to be there.

Is Hawaii the hardest test?

Yes, because of the level because the best is present and the conditions are very special. A harsh heat, very high humidity, lots of wind making the test difficult. Any mistake that pays you more than another trial.

Is the triathlon already parked?

My Olympic distance is parked. After 20 years of competing at the highest level, I wanted to change my goals a little bit, get out of my comfort zone and face a new distance, almost from the beginning. I’m learning a lot and so far that’s what motivates me. Once parked the Olympic distance.

Rafa Nadal showed that he knows how to master the pain threshold, do you too?

I totally understand. We had similar races in the sense that Nadal started winning in 2005 and I also started winning during that time, 2005-2006. There we kept fighting and the body ached, I also woke up in pain and it was rare a day that I didn’t limp in the first steps of getting out of bed. He does so much merit, he knows how to fight, improve himself, find solutions to keep competing, but not just to compete, to be the best in the world in his sport. He has all my admiration, for me it is a benchmark, regardless of everything he has won, in overcoming so much trouble and so much pain and injury because I know how hard it is to compete, to exercise when your body is sore. because you don’t enjoy it. There is so much merit to being able to win like that.

How do you see the health of Spanish athletes?

There was a better time. In triathlon specifically, 5-10 years ago, the more the sport was in the media, the more it was seen on television, the more the sponsors were involved. Now I see a downturn, but in general, the sport in terms of practitioners, licenses, fans has grown. As for the high level, not much. It’s a very good sport and hopefully we’ll have more importance in the media. Fortunately, we have many great Spanish athletes.