New Zealand triathlete Kyle Smith is the epitome of hard work, sometimes he'll admit, perhaps he goes too hard. He's worked so hard for all of his successes, working as a bricklayer with his Dad before earning enough money to fly with his bike and a backpack to race on the European scene. The belief and determination has paid off, with multiple 70.3 wins, Jan Frodeno as a training partner and the confidence to give Olympic qualification a crack for Paris 2024. Quite the story of this young lad who loved all things Equestrian when he was growing up near Blackburn, in the North West of England and only discovered triathlon when his family moved to Taupo, New Zealand when he was 12.

You'll hear:

16:00 When Kyle moved to New Zealand with his family and how he got into triathlon

18:00 Kyle gives an example of a mad Tuesday when he was a teenager.

22:00 What horse riding and equestrian meant to Kyle as a youngster and the work ethic he got from his parents.

24:00 Working with his dad as a bricklayer in 2020 and what he's learnt from that. 'After a few weeks of it, I was wrecked.' Doing triathlon was not an option and bricklaying was my option to make things work.

29:00 Why him leaving New Zealand is like Lord of The Rings! And what life was like when he left for Europe with a backpack, having qualified for Kona.

30:00 Why his original plan was to qualify for Tokyo... but then he qualified for Kona 'its been too good to be true' but it was never the plan really. I raced Ironman NZ and then qualified for Kona, so I came to Europe. I didn't even have a fork when I arrived. I remember the first two things I brought were a towel and a fork.

33:00 Why qualifying for the Collins Cup in 2020 changed everything and why security is so important.

35:00 Why he came to Girona

39:00 Why Braden Currie had to help him out when he was in Boulder as a 19-year-old and didn't really know Braden...!

41:00 The most influential thing he has learnt from Jan? Cutting out the junk training. Everything is just so calculated and everything is done for a reason. How it works training with him.

46:00 Why Kyle is targeting the Olympics in 2024 'I think the Olympic distance suits me more than Ironman but I have to go back to World Cup level and work my way through.'

49:00 Kyle talks about how it was Hayden Wylde and his coach who were also in favour of him giving the ITU another crack!

Find out more about this week's guest:

Kyle Smith Instagram

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