Beyond Going Long

Nick Baldwin, the Seychelle-English long course athlete has launched a new website so that his sponsors and fans of the sport can keep track of his progress. At just 23 years old he is one of the most promising long-course age-groupers on the WTC circuit and is aiming to turn pro in 2013.

Nick won his age group at the Abu Dhabi triathlon earlier this season and has big plans for 2012 - so the site is perfectly timed to capitalise on his rise into the pro ranks and provide him with a professional platform in which triathlon fans can follow this up-and-comer.

I caught up with Nick to find out a bit more about him and what his plans were for the rest of the year.

Nick Baldwin was born and (mostly) raised in the South of England, but he represents the Seychelles on the international arena due to his mothers heritage and an affinity to the location having spent time there growing up. Triathlon nearly lost him to academia and the world of finance after he graduated from Cardiff University in 2010 with a degree in Business Economics and French. After graduating, Nick started to apply for graduate schemes in finance, which allowed a time of self-reflection before deciding the corporate world wasn’t for him. Triathlon was his passion and he hasn’t looked back since.

As an age-grouper in the 18-24 category - Nick has done it all. AG wins came at Ironman Austria, Ironman South Africa and Ironman Western Australia (along with some UK podiums and wins, such as New Forest Middle). This was topped off with the Ironman Hawaii World Championship age group silver in 2011.

In 2012, Nick has taken to training full-time (although still racing as an age-grouper), as he plans to turn pro in 2013 and aims to take his performances to the next level. This immediately paid of with an AG win in the 20-24 category at Abu Dhabi. As he is so accomplished, at such a young age, Nick has great potential as a pro and is building an enviable endurance base and long course pedigree that could take him to the very top.

Here’s what he had to say:

Hi Nick, the new website looks great. Tell us a bit about how you plan to use it?

Like many triathletes, I started with an online blog, which I regularly updated to keep followers in the loop with what I was up to. Typical content included training updates, race reports and daily diaries when competing internationally. The new website makes better use of social media, allowing viewers to interact with me, as well as having a platform to find out other information about me and my sponsors.

You’ve had some pretty amazing age-group results over the last few years - and recently won the 20-24 in Abu Dhabi. How did that race pan out?

After a tough 2011 season, racing 3 Ironman’s, I took 4 weeks off over Christmas, and Abu Dhabi was a chance to see where my fitness was. The race transpired as I thought it would, although after a slow swim I started the bike a little further back than I would have liked. I never really got through the gears on the bike and ended up underbiking a touch. Without a great deal of run volume over winter I was a little nervous about the run, but it turned out to be the highlight of the day.

It was great to race again, and winning the AG and finishing as 2nd AGer overall was a good result.

Where else will we expect to see you pop up this year and what are your A goal targets for the year?

My next race is Ironman UK 70.3, which is a personal favourite of mine. The hills definitely suit me, so I’ll be hoping for a solid day out.

At the end of June I’m moving to Boulder, Colorado to train for a few months, so I’ll do a few local races as well as the Ironman 70.3 Boulder in August. Should I qualify, I’ll take my slot to Vegas for the 70.3 Championships, but of course, Kona is the main goal.

After finishing 2nd in the 18-24 AG last year, there’s a lot of motivation to go one better. The competition is tough though - I could have my best race and only finish 5th - but that’s the nature of a World Championship event. I’ll approach Kona with meticulous preparation and will be in the best possible shape on the start line.

You’re training full-time in 2012 - with a view to a pro licence in 2013. What sort of changes have you made to your training that will take you to the next level?

The big change I’ve made this year has been getting a coach. I’m now working with Brian Stover of Accelerate 3 Coaching, who’s based in Tucson, Arizona. He’s a coach who I’ve got a great deal of respect for and we approach training from very similar viewpoints, so there’s no second guessing on my part, which is key. Having experience in coaching elite age-groupers through to young professionals, I’m in good hands.

For a young athlete you are building an incredible endurance base. Do you see this as the perfect grounding for a succesful long course pro career as opposed to racing ITU and Olympic distance courses and moving up at a later age?

Racing long course as a young athlete is definitely the path less travelled. Most of the guys at the top of the sport come from a short-course background, but there are plenty of examples of athletes who have gone to long-course from the start of their career.

By the time I’m in my 30′s, I’ll have a lot of long-course experience to draw upon, which can only be a positive thing. I’m sure there will be periods in the future where I’ll focus on short-course races, but it’s the long-course events that motivate me to train and pursue a career as a professional. I’m not thinking of Ultraman just yet, but maybe one day!

You can visit Nick Baldwin’s website here: http://www.nick-baldwin.com/