Does the Shoe Fit?

Good morning everyone,

Last Tuesday here in Boulder we had a few inches of snow. Today? It’s supposed to be over 70F/20C. After a long winter has the switch been flipped to Spring/Summer?

I might have just jinxed it there! 😂

Also, I wanted to quickly thank everyone for being a part of the shoe giveaway. Thank you for signing up and/or referring your friends, you made it a huge success! And congrats to Marian B. for winning! 🎉🎉🎉 We’ll definitely be doing this again.

In today’s edition:

• Are you in the right race shoe? Time to find out! 👠

• Is cold immersion the best way to recover? 🥶

• And a full breakdown from the thrilling and controversial Arena Games final 🏆

Thank you for being here.

-Matt Sharpe, newsletter editor

Have a triathlete in your life who can't stop swimming, biking, or running? Fire this off to them. Forwarded from a friend? Sign-up for free. 

QUICK NEWS

🌲 New Challenge: On September 2nd, 2023, the inaugural edition of Challenge Malaysia will kick off in the master-planned future-forward Forest City. [Challenge Family]

🎵 St. Louis showcase: If you’re in the St. Louis, Missouri area this upcoming weekend, be sure to check out the action or volunteer at the Gateway Triathlon Cup. Potential volunteers should contact Stephanie ([email protected]). The weekend features adult draft-legal and para-triathlon mixed relay exhibitions. Also some of the best triathletes in the world will be battling it out at the Pan-American Cup races. [St. Louis Dispatch]

⏱️ Buying time: If you’ve done a race in North America, there’s a good chance it was timed by Sportstats. The global timing company recently announced an acquisition by an internal group led by current CEO A.J. Mousseau. For previous owner Marc Roy, it was clearly the right time to sell, and no doubt he’ll watch them achieve further success. [Endurance Sportswire]

Arena Games Triathlon World Championships, London

It was a thrilling, dynamic, and somewhat controversial weekend of racing at the Arena Games Triathlon Championship Final in London that saw Beth Potter (GBR) and Nicolo Strada (ITA) take the race wins, while Henri Schoeman (RSA) and Sophie Linn (AUS) were crowned Arena Games World Champions 🌈

Women: The addition of WTS medalists Cassandre Beaugrand (FRA) and Beth Potter (GBR) brought another level to the championship event.

• In stage one, the athletes completed a 200m swim, 4km bike an 1km run. Potter quickly erased Beaugrand’s swim gap and put 10 seconds into the French athlete by the stage’s end. Linn was just behind and put in a huge effort to try and win the world title over her rival Gina Sereno (USA).

Zsanett Bragmayer (HUN), a pre-race pick for the World Championship title, swam and biked with the leaders. But when she jumped on her treadmill, she uncharacteristically hemorrhaged time and lost over 30 seconds to Potter in one kilometer…

• In stage two it was run/bike/swim, and Beaugrand flexed her run pedigree on the field, putting time into Potter. But at the end of the stage, she only gained a couple of seconds on the Brit. Linn furthered her advantage in the title chase as they entered the final stage.

Diving into the pool for stage three Potter continued to hold her ground against Beaugrand. When they hopped on the bike it appeared that Potter had another gear as she rode, and eventually ran away from Beaugrand to take the win. Linn continued her strong performance and finished 18 seconds ahead of Rani Skrabanja (NED) to win the Arena Games World Championship Title.

Tempo’s Take: There’s a reason why the stands were packed with screaming fans. Potter and the women’s field put on an exceptional show!

• In the second stage, it looked like Beaugrand was dialing it to 11 and ready to give Potter a run for her money, but she couldn’t maintain the incredible pace and, in the end, finished strong in second.

Linn was rock-solid all around and was certainly a deserving champion. And as we’ve mentioned before, she also works full-time for Wahoo Fitness. Not your typical post-weekend water cooler brag!

Men: In the first stage Nicolo Strada (ITA), Henri Schoeman (RSA), and Chase McQueen (USA) led the field out of the water, but McQueen, in the same lane/treadmill as Bragmayer, uncharacteristically faded on the run, and was quickly out of contention for the world title 🤔🤔🤔.

• In stage two the athletes started with the run. Ironman World Champion Gustav Iden (NOR) and Kyle Smith (NZL) went full leg-mode, and only Nicolo Strada (ITA) could match their efforts.

Iden and Smith both caught up in the action, served costly penalties for not putting their shoes in the transition box, and watched Strada and the swimmers paddle away. Meanwhile, McQueen played to the crowd,

It all came down to the final stage, and Strada truly showed up in the stadia keeping the Rio Olympic medalist Schoeman at bay, and taking the overall race win. Schoeman held his lead over third, which was a thrilling battle between Smith and Simon Westermann (SUI), with the Kiwi just outsprinting the Swiss athlete.

Tempo’s Take: Strada showed why he is one to watch in the virtual AND real arenas with a consistently strong performance across all disciplines. And after a couple of years with injuries and misfortune, it was great to see Schoeman back on the podium.

• The Arena Games Triathlon showed why it deserves to be an Olympic sport. The action and drama were undeniable, and given the IOC’s push for eSports, and more “modern” events, the AGT truly fits the mold.

But, as alluded to earlier, there was clearly an issue with the McQueen/Bragmayer treadmill. This presents a learning opportunity for the race organizers World Triathlon and Super League Triathlon. We’re sure there will be more on this in the coming weeks 👀

Full race results.

Other races

World Triathlon Asian Triathlon Cup Dexing, China

Full results here.

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POLL RESULTS

After watching the Arena Games this weekend, we think it’s clear that this could be an Olympic sport. Here’s what you all thought about eSports in the games.

Not super surprising, and Tempo reader Karen L made a great point that Olympic athletes generally compete in-person, which might not be the case for typical eSports.

Are you an expert and want to be featured in The Tempo? Fill out this form and we’ll get back to you ASAP

OMG

Well, this is definitely one of the most impressive and insane Strava posts we’ve seen! On Sunday Professional cyclist and Ironman champion Cam Wurf (AUS) raced the Paris-Roubaix cycling classic, also known as “The Hell of the North.”

• Instead of hitting the showers post-race, he laced up his shoes and hit the bricks. Running a half marathon in 1:26!

• See the full Strava time here.

What do you think he’s eating after a workout like that?

FAVOURITES

🎨 The beauty of triathlon: Triathlete Cynthia Wells isn’t just an athlete, she is an incredible artist. Read more about how she combines her passion for sport and art complement each other, and have led to some incredible paintings. [Triathlete]

❄️ Is cold gold: Is cold water immersion actually good for recovery? How does it stack up against other recovery methods like massage? Or cryotherapy? The results of a meta-analysis were definitely not what we were expecting. [YLM Sports Science]

👟 Which shoe for you: Do you know which Supershoe is best for you? Or are you missing out? Ironman 70.3 Champion Steve McKenna tried to figure it out for himself. He did an incredibly detailed analysis of which shoe was right for him, and even tested himself on bike-fatigued legs. Take a look at this video, you may end up taking a second look at your race shoe. [Steven McKenna/YouTube]

TEMPO EXCLUSIVE ARCHIVE

• That Triathlon Life gives back to future pros.

• How Kaylee Slade manages pro triathlon training and vet school.

• Expert analysis: Are you making the four most common nutrition mistakes.

• Expert analysis: How to nail your Ironman training nutrition.

• Expert analysis: How do smartphones affect performance? A breakdown with Nate Wilson.

LATEST EDITIONS

• Is there a better way to breathe? And quick tricks for a better aero position.

• Triathlon on the cheap? And conquer cold water with these tips!

• Are you at risk for a running injury? Plus: Oceanside preview.

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