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Xtri Chats With Magali Tisseyre
By Betsy Delcour
11/18/2009 |
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Magali Tisseyre is a young up-and-comer from Quebec. In addition to some impressive results this year (including a win at the Boise 70.3), Magali had a breakthrough race in Clearwater, placing 3rd overall with the fastest women's run of the day at 1:20:31. We recently had a chance to chat with Magali as she prepares for another finish line - presenting her thesis for her master's degree in Biomechanics! Here's what Magali had to say...
Hey Magali – congrats on an outstanding race! Right on to business – can you give us a quick recap of how the day went?
THANK YOU!!! The day went….better and better….
I started the swim out feeling very focused and efficient, I had been training hard in the pool with Lance in the last three weeks. It was also my first time trying out the new TYR Hurricane Cat 5 wetsuit and it just felt great. However, I didn’t place myself well at the start of the swim and ended up getting hit from all sides throughout the race, I even got my goggles knocked off and almost lost the pack. I guess it is what I would have to endure in order to stay with the chase pack. I started and ended with that group of girls, I was putting in a good, regular effort and just being in that pack must have helped me improve my swim time and stay within a reasonable gap of the girls in the lead pack.I am very happy with the way I came out of the water, on track, not too far behind the lead pack.
The bike portion felt very different, I was also riding new equipment on this one. I have been on the Triad from Blue since the last three weeks and have been loving it. I was very excited to finaly get to race with it. I also was trying the Zipp 1080’s in front for the first time and could definitely feel the advantages of that in the portions of the bike where I had a slight side wind. I started the bike going out fast as I could see Michellie Jones ahead. It took some time to ride up in front of her as I would find out that our pace during that race would be quite similar, she was not going to let me get away! Throughout the race I either had a visual of Michellie pushing hard up front or was trying to pass her and get ahead. I am convinced this definitely helped me stay focused and give the bike a good, constant, honest effort. I don’t know her much but she seems like a very nice girl. She raced with a smile and encouraged me as she went by.
About a quarter of the way through the bike leg, a massive pack of men came by and I didn’t know what to do. I looked back at some girls to see how they would react. This section just felt like a bike race, suddenly, we were surrounded by men, this lasted a few minutes and there was nothing we could do about it. Though it was hard, I let them go by slowly and decided to play safe. I definitely felt that if any of us had really drafted in that group, we could have stayed with it until the end. But it is important to me to play fair. Soon, It was back to me watching Michellie at a distance, pushing hard on our own and using that to keep my pace up. Another pack of men went by us, about half way through the bike. Again, we played fair and let them go. My legs felt strong on the bike but I focused on keeping some energy for the run. I knew that a race like Clearwater is won on the run, not on the bike. I was able to be smart about nutrition and hydration on the bike this year and managed to finish the bike feeling strong. I had promised this to myself , as last year I had completely faded in the second half of the bike.
I got off the bike and had a fast transition….I was eighth and looking at Laura Bennet’s long legs hit the pavement, promising myself that I would not let her go. Until I figured the pace was just not reasonable, remembering the words of my coach, I stayed patient, kept up a solid pace and prayed! Laura had formed a gap and was running hard in front, then Michellie passed me, I held on to her. We moved back up to Laura that seemed to be bringing the rhythm back down at around 7K. I just kept feeling better and better, was on task, very motivated and concentrating on opening up slowly and staying smart. On the bridge, I realized how good my legs were as I saw Michellie and Laura seemed to suffer more. I did what I had planned and started opening up on the last lap, I just felt so good, I couldn’ t believe it, I started passing people…realizing I could do a top five, building on that emotion, moving up to fourth. Getting close to the finish only to realize people were screaming I was almost third. But there was no one in sight! Until she appeared with a couple hundred meters to go. The run was my dream run! The run I had waited for a long time. I knew I could do this in training but it had to happen in a race this year…and there it was! Happening just at the ideal moment!
At the end of the race, you had a sprint duel with Caroline Steffen. Have you ever had to sprint like this at the end of a race before? What went through your mind in those moments?
Funny that you would ask! I have actually lost fifth place at Boise last year on a sprint finish that I had initiated! I had come over the first mat in first place and reduced my effort just to see the other girl appear to my left and charge by at the last moment. She hit the last timing mat one second ahead of me. Very frustrating! So what was I thinking??? NOT THIS TIME GIRL!!!! Hahaha. I charged over all of those timing mats and almost kept on going. Part of me also wondered where she was….It is as if she had not really responded to my sprint, I was expecting to see her by my side and couldn’t see her anymore. I just ran for my life! When I crossed the finish line I couldn’t believe it! She had not responded and I was third. 5 minutes earlier, I didn’t even see third place through the crowd! People were yelling that she was right there and I couldn’t see her! What a surprise! It kind of felt too good to be true…
With Clearwater, a recurring topic of conversation is rampant drafting. What did you see out on the course? Did you have any difficulty with the other pro girls or the age group men?
As I said, there were these packs of men that passed us at different times. The girls I saw around me did not appear to be voluntarily drafting in a ridiculous way but I don’t understand how some spectators said that some girls arrived into town with the pack of men. These men had passed us early on, that must have been a big advantage if they had used them for drafting for all that time! I didn’t see any of this myself but also heard it from the men as we waited for doping control. It is disappointing to hear things like that. It would have definitely been to my advantage that the bike course be more challenging and that there had been no drafting. I hope that a solution will be found for drafting at that race in the years to come. I realize it is a great challenge to control it on such a course.
How did you first get involved in triathlon, and when did you realize you were good enough to go pro?
I got involved in triathlon when I decided to join the university team out of the blue, almost six years ago. After having won overall in the first local race I tried, I decided to race Elite on the provincial circuit. I was new to all three sports but being a new swimmer was definitely making it hard for me in the drafting races of the Quebec cups. I would get out of the water all alone, in the back and always had to ride up to the front of the race on the bike and was already secretly dreaming about long distance racing as I was! I was attracted to duathlon as well because results came easily without the swim! The second year in the sport, I went to duathlon worlds for Canada and won my age group. That is when I decided that I would race pro at the national and international level. I was still in school full time and very new at the sport but I wanted to race pro to gain some experience and get better faster. I would say this year is my first true year as a pro though as I got to focus more on triathlon than school, got a serious coach, some good sponsors and was training almost full time for the first time in my life.
How did you hook up with Lance Watson?
In Boise last year, I met coaches Bruce Regensburg and Dan Smith and I had a good feeling about them. I knew I had to get a serious coach if I wanted to take things more seriously this year. After the race, I contacted Lifesport twice and am glad I insisted as I got a call from Paul Regensburg around last Christmas. (Apparently, Bruce had put in some good words for me!!)
Paul invited me to hop on the plane and join the team for a try….in the next few days!!!
I went and loved it! I immediately felt comfortable with all coaches and athletes from that AMAZING group. I met Lance at that first camp in Victoria. I knew about his reputation, mainly because of the great work he had done with Lisa Bentley (who I had admired for a long time), Simon Whitfield (of course) and, most recently, Linsey Corbin! Linsey had just passed me at the end of the race in Boise and had finished the season with a strong fifth place in Kona! I was impressed! I had noticed she was also with Lifesport. I knew I had to get into the winning team!!!!!
You’ve endured a couple of Lance’s training camps now, in Maui and most recently Victoria. Who else have you trained with at these camps, and how has your fitness improved as a result?
At those camps, I learned what it was like to train like a pro. Concentrating on training only, following a plan every day without other distractions getting into the way, working with the best coaches in the world and some of the strongest athletes drastically improved my performance and very quickly. The first camp I did had been very demanding,( at least twice the training volume I was used to !). It was such a big effort. By the time I got to the second camp in Maui, I could definitely handle more and it just kept on getting better and better. I was really surprised at how quickly the times went down and how much better I felt after those camps.
I had also never trained with such strong athletes and that definitely also helped. Lifesport is a team of amazing athletes and coaches that brought so much positive energy into my life. My training buddy of the year was definitely Linsey Corbin. I remember working hard just to stay on her wheel on a three hour Climb in Maui (that earned me the title of “Remora,” as I was ALWAYS there, riding the Corbin Express, hanging on for dear life…). I also remember how we challenged each other on each long run we did! I also really enjoyed training with Bree Wee, another amazing athlete and person as well as Heather Gollnick, Haley Cooper, Katya Meyers, Lisa Mensink and more recently Amanda Stevens and Kerry Spearing. And there are the guys! Justin Park, Brent McMahon, Brent Poulsen. Our big brothers, the ones that are there for us and help us step it up!
Without them, I could never have had the season I had this year. Each of them has brought so much to me.
Besides joining Lance Watson’s team, 2009 has been a breakout season for you as far as your other races and sponsorships. Can you talk about some of the other races you’ve done leading up to Clearwater? And who are your sponsors so far?
This season has been all about surprising myself and getting to know myself as an athlete. I surprised myself with some good races to start off the year! I still felt a bit tired from the camp but placed sixth in a competitive field in New Orleans 70.3 and third in Florida 70.3. But the real surprise came in Boise, my comeback race! Where I won, improving my time by more than twenty minutes! At that point, the fatigue from the camp gave place to some good racing energy! I had a great time down there and really was just surprised. I was glad to confirm a fast times in the next race (Vancouver international alf Ironman) and had a solid race in Calgary 70.3, placing second. Then, there was the part of the season where I felt a bit tired and wondered if I had done a lot for my first year of serious racing: My fourth place in Muskoka and fifth place in Georgia were disappointing. I was given some time off before and between those races and went into a three week camp in preparation for Clearwater. Again, the fatigue turned into good racing energy and I finished the year placing third in Clearwater. That one definitely put a smile on my face!
I am very glad about the way I am organized as far as sponsorship is concerned. I am feeling that there is a solid team of close friends behind me and that is a true blessing. Paul Regensburg introduced me to manager and friend Travis Blanton after the camp in Hawaii and together, we have worked very well at setting up a team of sponsors. I am very thankfull to all of the sponsors that have helped me get to this point. I am also very excited about the new sponsors that are now supporting my career and are doing such a great job. After Boise, I signed with TYR. That was a definite step in terms of support. I met a new group of incredible, dynamic, passionate people that definitely play a big part in supporting my career now. People at TYR are very involved in the sport and give a hands-on support to their athletes. I feel very lucky to have found a sponsor that shares my passion for what I do. I am also currently working with Trakkers as they are designing a website for me and seem like very creative, open minded people. Very fun to work with. Then there the most recent addition to my team! Blue bikes… My team mate Brent McMahon has been on Blue, Brent is very serious about the quality of the equipment and I always take advice from him on the matter. My coach also believes in the product and I have been hearing a lot about how great the Blue bike product was and also how he admired their values. When they sent me a bike to try out shortly before Clearwater, I gave it a try. I loved it so much, I decided to race on my Triad in Clearwater, I never thought I would do that before I got on the bike. I met with Chance, from Blue in Clearwater and we got along great, that is very important to me. I now have a new member to my amazing family of sponsors.
Oh, and of course, there is Lifesport, the sponsor that has guided me through all of this and have helped me reach the results that have made all the rest possible.
I really feel that I have been very lucky with finding new sponsors. I am also very thankful to fuel Belt. Shortly before Clearwater, I received a box of great products from Fuel Belt. I got to take them out there on the race course in Clearwater. It was the finishing touch!
The life of a pro triathlete involves a lot of travel. How do you manage to get your training in, and how do you manage your diet with long days in airports or on the road?
My coach helps me coordinate traveling and taining in a very efficient way. He picks out the days that are optimal for travel and I follow! I follow Lance’s golden rules of nutrition when I travel. It is important to always remember to have food handy (especially when you eat as much as I do!!!), and the most important to remember while traveling is hydration. I make sure I travel with lots of water and electrolytes. Other than that, I love to travel and I don’t get stressed about nutrition more than I should. Traveling is one of the reasons I love what I do. Lance makes sure I plan my travels correctly (and holds me back from doing too much traveling!!). It is all part of the training plan! Even traveling to my sister’s wedding this winter on a small island where it was nearly impossible to bike, involved bringing a compu-trainer and pedaling on there by the beach!
Besides being a pro triathlete, you’re also a student! Can you tell us what you’re studying and when you’ll be finished?
Once I finish completing this interview, I am going on a different kind of time trial: The last step on my season…I am handing in my thesis in the next few days!!! When that is done, I will have a master’s degree in Biomechanics . My study concernes the kinematic analysis of cross-sloped running. In the project, I relate the running condition to overuse injury.
So far the longest distance you’ve raced is the 70.3. Do you have plans to move up to the IM distance? If so, which races interest you most (besides Kona!).
I am racing 70.3’s because I have a long term goal of doing great at Ironman. Since I started triathlon, it is the Hawaii Ironman that has inspired me. I do have plans to move up to Ironman distance racing. I want to race 70.3’s optimally first and build my speed. I might be trying my first Ironman next year. I don’t know which one could be my first. I am strong in the hills on the bike and would maybe like to give myself a chance by not racing in extreme heat conditions on my first. I will have to see!
Thanks Magali! Good luck with your thesis, and we can't wait to see what the future holds for you!
For more info, check out Magali's blog at http://magalitisseyre.blogspot.com/.
Photo #2 courtesy of Ramon Serrano |
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