Sports

Andrew Magee, BUCS Championships student journalist, catches up with Triathlon Champions Jonathan and Alistair Brownlee at the BUCS Championships 2010 launch

How has university sport helped you?

A: Sport has always been what I wanted to do because it’s my passion, but university has helped me because it gave me another focus so that I wasn’t completely wrapped up in sport. And I’ve been involved in university sport where I’ve met friends and that is quite a big thing.

As a student, do you ever feel like you’ve missed out on certain elements of student life with such a focus on sport?

A:  I’m never really jealous of the party goers. You definitely get a chance to do that, you’ve just got to be up at 7 o’clock the next morning to swim and it really makes a man out of you! I’m lucky in lots of other ways - I get to travel around the world to race and do what I love so I don’t really get jealous.

Have you got a particular place around the world that you love going to?

A: Well I love being at home in Yorkshire actually. The Dales are fantastic. We’ve got really good running in England because we’ve got loads of footpaths and back roads. Apart from that I love Canada and New Zealand.

As a sporting sibling rivalry do you drive each other on - is it always competitive?

A: We’re brothers and we’re only two years apart so it’s going to be competitive. Considering we train together and compete together we get on pretty well really!

And if you two had a 100m sprint race, who would win?

A: Oh he probably would, I can’t sprint for…

J: I’m not great either really, just an endurance man.

Who are your role models?

A: I don’t really have any! I’ve been swimming and running since I was really young and I probably got the idea for triathlon from my uncle. But I wouldn’t really call him a role model because he only did it once a week on his way to the pub!

Has it always been endurance sports for you or are there other sports you wish you’d tried?

A: Absolutely endurance sports all the way. I’m absolutely useless at anything that involves coordination or skill. It’s always what I’ve done and it’s what I enjoy. My motivation for sport is just being outside and being active really.

What’s the worst thing that’s ever happened to you in a triathlon?

A: I once came out of the transition onto my bike in the lead, went round the first corner where there was a big crowd and I fell straight off and I was on my own! There was no reason for falling off, it was just a stupid error. That was pretty embarrassing.

Do most of the problems happen around the transition?

A: Yea. There’s a lot of people together and you’re all trying to do things at once. I saw a nasty accident at a race in London this year where some guy got a spoke between two of his toes. It was absolutely disgusting.

What are your plans for 2010?

A: Well there’s the World Series in triathlon every year and the European Championships and a few other big races. And really just building towards 2012 and the race in London in Hyde Park is going to be a good thing.

J: I was a junior last year so this year I’m in the under 23 level and I’ll just try and do the best I can

With the BUCS Championships coming up in March how important do you think events like that are for national sport?

A: It’s enormous. People at university at a high level of competition get another chance to compete which is always good. It gives the people who might be a few levels below inspiration as you get to compete against some of the country’s best athletes and you can’t do that in lots of other events. It also acts as a useful link between school and international competition. If you look at other countries like America, where everything is based around university sport, it’s something we’ve really got to work on in this country to provide our athletes.

And finally, 2012 who’s going to win?

A: Probably neither of us to be honest!

J: He’s world champion at the moment so we’ll have to wait and see. I was a junior last year so I’ll just have to take it a year at a time. It’s a big step up. It’s such a massive thing really. And the Olympics is massive anyway, and to have it in England is incredible. But it’s a long time off so I’ve just got to think about next year, then the year after that. But hopefully I’ll get there.
 

Last updated: 17th Feb 2010 16:05

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