Pro women's field

In the wake of Chrissie Wellington's decision to take a year off Ironman - this year, I wrote two columns for ironman.com

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End of an era

Chrissie Wellington’s decision to take a year off from Ironman racing marks the end of an era.

Wellington races with an intensity few athletes, women or men, match. By all accounts, she trains the same way. That’s how elite athletes become elite; you can’t race at 110 percent if you train at 55 percent.

The end result of being the world’s fastest, and most dominant, woman Iron-triathlete these past five years is that there is little time or energy for anything else.

Taking a break from that regimented life could help extend her career. Or it could confirm to her that it’s time to move on. It’s a decision that all athletes must eventually take. And it’s an intensely personal one.

Originally from: http://ironman.com/profiles/timothy-moores-reflects-on-chrissie-wellingtons-retirement-and-a-lava-magazine-preview-that-includes-an-i#ixzz1lQgSDCKB

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Record(s) to fall

It's early, very early in the season and yet the dynamics for the pro women's field have been significantly altered. Chrissie Wellington opened the door the last few years for a rush of personal best performances by the elite of the elite with a sub-nine performance in Frankfurt in July 2008. Since then, 17 women have surged into the group.

The majority of those athletes are keen to show that their performances over the last four years weren’t a fluke.

Wellington’s decision to take this year off begs a few questions. Will a new world-best be set this season? Will more athletes finish a full-distance race under nine hours? Will more athletes finish sub 8:45? Will another athlete finish sub 8:30? Why not?

Originally from: http://ironman.com/columns/ironmanlife/timothy-moore-looks-forward-to-an-exciting-year-of-racing#ixzz1lQh2Dwmy