“Sports are a fantastic school of life”

Encounter with Didier Brocard, professional triathlete, Swiss National Team A – November 5th 2006 in New York

www.didier-brocard.ch

Picture to the left: Didier winning the International Geneva Triathlon 2004

ING New York City Marathon 2006, at the starting line few hours before beginning the race:

Thank you Didier for granting this interview to Help-for-Hope. As one of the world’s top professional triathletes, what are your best memories in elite sports so far?

Looking back at my sports career to date, I have been fortunate enough to experience many special moments. One particular experience however has been the Triathlon World Championship in Lausanne, in September 2006. For one, the race has been held on my “home turf”, as I live in Yverdon and train on an almost daily basis in Lausanne, and know many people in the area. I had experienced many difficult moments during the year, as I had been injured. And I had been preparing for 2 years leading up to the race. The enthusiasm of the crowds who supported me was just overwhelming. In the end, the result was not as good as I had hoped for, I aimed at a place amongst the top 10. Instead I finished around place 50. But the crowds pushed me to complete the race, and to me that support is a very strong memory.

Short Profile Date of birth : July 22, 1977 Place of birth : Grandson, Switzerland Profession     : professional triathlete since 2003 Swiss Team : since 1995, currently Swiss Team A (top 7 triathletes) Highlight        : 2006 World Championships of triathlon in Lausanne #1 rankings   : Brno (2003), Geneva (2004), Pietra Ligura (2005), Italian team champ (2006) Goal in sports : participation in Olympics in Beijing (2008) Goal in life : Build a family, transmit the dream of sports to children

Congratulations Didier! Tell us, how did you first get into triathlon?

That’s a bit of a funny story. As a teenager, I injured my knees and had to undergo surgery, which put on hold my football activities. At about the same time, we had a project work at school, involving the presentation of a sport. My mom suggested triathlon, then an up-and-coming new sport. As I read more and more about it, I got interested in the sport, and started to train for about a year before doing my first race. That was at the age of 14-15. I got rapidly “hooked”, and training soon took out a large chunk of my free time. I finished school formation, and then worked 50% in a commercial role at a local bank. The rest of the time I dedicated to triathlon. Then, in 2003, I became a professional triathlete.

How does a day of training look like?

I train twice a day, 6 days a week. I usually try to link two disciplines together. For example I get back from a biking tour, then put on my running shoes and continue running, even if sometimes I put a short break in between. Also, 6 times per week I go to Lausanne for swim training. I have 3 trainers: for running Jean-François Pahud, for swimming Christain Fabaron, and for biking Fabio Vedana. Fabio trains the Italian triathlon team, and he sends me my training programs via internet.

Mental preparedness is often mentioned as a competitive advantage - how do you manage tough moments in races?

True, mental toughness is an essential element to succeed. It starts already in training, with the discipline to stick to a training schedule and going “out there” also at moments you don’t feel like doing so. Pushing your limits and learning to deal with discomfort is an important element of training. During races, when pain sets in, for example during the last leg - running – I try to put myself into an imaginary bubble, isolating myself from competitors and what’s going on around me. And then I often focus on the technique, visualizing the ideal running form, starting from a straight posture of the head, then relaxing the shoulders, an upright torso, the swing of the arms, the stride of the legs, the impact of the feet, and then back again to the head, and so on. It helps me deal with pain, while maintaining pace and running efficiently.

Becoming a professional triathlete, how has this changed your life?

It has been an enriching experience! It has allowed me to travel the world, it has honed my character, and it has opened doors to opportunities that normally I would not have had access to. If I had to choose again, I’d repeat the step to become a professional triathlete, no doubt.

Are there elements of elite sports that you would rather miss?

For sure, it is not all gold that shines. As in all elite sports also professional triathlon has its reverse sides. There are moments when putting on your running shoes or saddling your bike or jumping into the water requires a lot of will, especially since it is done on a daily basis. Some days the routine element can be looming also in triathlon, and there are moments when you go for a training run because it is your profession, “to make a living”. Also, competition is fierce at the top level, and “real” friendships tend to be rather rare. As in all elite sports competition, sponsors, public, federation etc often expect athletes to deliver top performance all year round. It becomes than easy for athletes to fall into the trap of using performance enhancing substances, a temptation that is very real for so many athletes.

How do you deal with this aspect, so often mentioned in the press?

I found it essential to know one-self, and what is important in life. I want to remain true to my philosophy and my values. I want to remain the person I am independently of race results. It is my personal choice. I’m not ready to go there… to win races at “any” price, compromising on what I think is correct and ethical. I guess that’s like in business... I’m convinced that it is possible to remain absolutely “clean” and win top races, as long as you’re allowed to plan your competitive season for 2-3 performance peaks. I’m quite outspoken about this, and that hasn’t always made it easy for me, but that’s who I am.

Where do you take the strength of character from?

I don’t know, I guess it goes way back to the values my parents educated me with, and to my friends. I talk a lot about these topics with my friends, and they help me stay with the big picture, refocus on what is important, understand the consequences of crossing the limit, etc. I think it is also very important to talk a lot with the future generation of athletes, especially also with children, about these topics. Sports are so beautiful, I want to keep the image of sports I had when I was a small boy.

What are your goals going forward?

My dream is to participate in the Olympic Games of 2008 in Beijing, and stay true to my philosophy. I’m fortunate enough to have two job offers waiting for me when I will stop my professional sports career, one as a trainer at a health center, and the other in a commercial role at a bank. But I know I haven’t yet reached my peak performance level, and there is still potential. For 2007, I will go to Jordan on March 3rd for my first triathlon competition of the new season. Longer term, I dream of having a family, children, a lot of friends and human contacts, be around a table, laugh, play cards, drink a glass in good company. Very simple things…

You are also involved with bringing children closer to sports, can you tell us more about it?

I’m convinced that through sports you can keep many people, and especially children, away from problems that are all too common today: depression, drugs, violence, etc. I have started to work more with children, as sports trainer, and performing health tests at the “Centre Thermal in Yverdon”. Working with children will probably take more and more of my focus. Sports are a fantastic school of life!