2. www.triathlonmag.com.au Triathlon & Multisport Magazine | 31
Pete Jacobs scaled triathlon’s Everest, Kona, in 2012 aged just 30. He appeared
destined for a bright future in the sport but it hasn’t exactly gone to script, mainly due
to his on going battle with chronic fatigue. Now, having finished on the podium at the
Asia-Pacific Championship, Pete is ready to rule the roost in Hawaii once more.
Words: Keagan Ryan | Images: Delly Carr & Getty Images
FIGHTING
FATIGUE
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3. 32| Triathlon & Multisport Magazine www.triathlonmag.com.au
I
n 2012 Julia Gillard was still the Prime
Minister of Australia and Pete Jacobs
had just won the Ironman World
Championship, finishing ahead of
Andreas Raelert (Germany) and Frederik
Van Lierde (Belgium) in a time of 8:18:37.
Considering he was only 30, it was fair to think
that the Sydney-raised athlete would enjoy a
bright future in the sport. Pete was on top of
the world.
“It was a dream come true; it had been a goal
for 10 years. In the back of my mind I believed I
could win it, so to finally achieve that proved that,
over the previous 10 years, I had made the right
decisions. It was a heap of joy and it was very
exciting too,” he said of winning Kona.
While he has had success, including victories
at Ironman 70.3 Sunshine Coast (2013) and
Huskisson (2014), it’s fair to say Pete hasn’t
reached the heights many would’ve expected
of an Ironman world champion. Mainly due to
a running, and still on going, battle with chronic
fatigue – a disorder characterised by severe
tiredness that doesn’t improve with rest. There
is no exact medical explanation for chronic
fatigue syndrome and in some cases it’s not
medically recognised.
“It (fatigue) comes in many, many different forms
for different people. To me it was my body not
working at all, operating at about 20 per cent, not
being able to think clearly, lethargic and heavy
muscles, no strength and you have no joy in doing
anything,” he said.
“You’re too tired to enjoy going out for a
mountain bike ride because you don’t have the
strength or energy to do it. It saps you in every
aspect of your body.”
But fatigue didn’t set in overnight; it had been
something Pete had dealt with since he was a
teenager. In 2012 Pete thought he understood his
body well enough to know when to push and
when to take it easy.
“I was okay if I took a few days off – I’d come
back better on the other side. After winning it
(Kona), the fatigue got worse. It wasn’t just a few
days and bouncing back; it was a few weeks. Then
last year it was almost a few months,” he said.
“For a month or two at a time, fatigue would
hang around, then I’d come back for a month of
good training then be fatigued again. It was also
injuries as well as being tired and not being able to
enjoy everything – it was a snowball effect.
“I think accumulative Ironman races and also
just getting older [set it off]. Whenever you get
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4. www.triathlonmag.com.au Triathlon & Multisport Magazine | 33
BELOW: Pete
announced himself as a
serious Kona contender
with a commanding
performance in Cairns
for the Asia-Pacific
Championship,
finishing third.
older, any issue you have is going to get worse. I
wasn’t as resilient when I was younger – they were
the main couple of things. I was also up against
it – when you sign contracts for races, you want
to do them, you want to prove you are as good as
you believe you are, you want to get out there and
prove yourself but you’re also putting yourself in
more of a hole.”
Not only has fatigue been hard to deal with
physically, but it has also taken a substantial mental
toll on Pete, who is also an ambassador for the
Indigenous Marathon Project.
“It’s incredibly frustrating. I do the sport because
I want to see what I can get out of my body and
I want to race against other very talented athletes
and I want to try and beat them – that’s the whole
excitement of competing. When that’s your career,
your hobby and your passion, it’s very frustrating
to not be able to enjoy any of it and achieve
anything,” he said.
“Ever since I was a teenager, I’ve spent a lot
of money on all different tests. Every liquid that
comes out of the body, hair, you name it, I’ve
tested it. I’ve tried eliminating gluten and this, that
and the other, so a lot of diet stuff. Supplements as
well and then a few other treatments, which had
their benefits for some of the injuries and issues
I had but at the end of the day it wasn’t solving
the bottom line issue. Once I started training and
pushing my body a bit more, I was still falling in a
hole of fatigue.”
Most of the frustration stems from the fact
he is restricted in his training. While his rivals
are out improving their splits and working on
constant improvement, Pete is limited in how
much time he can spend swimming, cycling and
running. Although it’s an undoubted disadvantage
compared to his rivals, Pete is prepared to back
himself as an athlete come race day.
“Some other athletes may do, for example, a
30-kilometre run in the morning, with intervals
in that, and then five hours on the bike in the
afternoon. There’s no way I could do anything
after my long run. My long run is it for the week;
that’s me done,” he said.
“I definitely take a lot longer to recover, but there
are ways around that. You can only get so fit, and
what you do in training doesn’t reflect on race
day. I probably do several hours less than others
on the bike, I probably run 30 kilometres less
than some others and I only swim 10 kilometres
a week; others are doing 20-plus kilometres a
week. There are others running less, biking more
and others swimming more and running less –
everyone’s different, but overall I definitely do less
than other (professionals).
“I’m still trying to find out what I can get out of
my body. At the moment I believe I can get there,
mentally and physically combined, to the top step.
Everybody’s got their strengths and weaknesses.
I can’t train as much but I’m more efficient, so I
might have a better technique swimming and
running and maybe overall more efficient with
my fitness levels. They might train a lot more but
perhaps (they’re) not as efficient. At the end of the
day, what’s done in training doesn’t mean a lot on
race day.”
But, ahead of the Ironman World Championship,
Pete is confident he understands his body and
the loads it can handle. Recently he completed a
Hawaii reconnaissance to ensure he will be ready
for Kona, reporting back positive results, especially
from the bike course, which he conquered
numerous times during his recon trip. The fact
he is prepared to undergo such preparation
is a testament to how committed Pete is to
overcoming fatigue and making the most out of
his professional career despite the constant battle
he faces. Before that Hawaii trip, Pete made the
podium at the Ironman Asia-Pacific Championship,
finishing third behind Tim Van Berkel and
David Dellow.
“I felt a little taller and there was a lot of weight
off my shoulders,” he said.
“It was just joy and happiness to be racing
again, to be in the fight for a podium spot and to
have a bit of fight at the end of the marathon…I
was really happy. I got a lot of confidence from
Cairns, which is what you need when training for
Hawaii. I haven’t had that (confidence) for a while.”
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5. 34| Triathlon & Multisport Magazine www.triathlonmag.com.au
Pete can also take confidence from his previous
success at the grand prix of triathlon – Kona.
Pete’s 2011 victory was preceded by two top-
10 finishes (2009 and 2010) and the third-fastest
run in the course’s history. It’s fair to say there
are good memories in Hawaii for Pete, which is
relevant in a place where the battle is won inside
the head as much as it is on the race course. He
feels those positive experiences will hold him in
good stead this time around.
“It’s something you think about quite a bit when
you’re on your own and out training and it’s even
more interesting when you start chatting with
other athletes,” he said of knowing what it takes to
tackle Kona.
“Chatting to Dave Dellow – who hasn’t been
back since 2012, when he got ninth – about his
approach and his ideas makes me think more
about my ideas and mine can also help him a bit
too. A lot of it is about self-reflection and talking to
others and getting their ideas, taking what works
ABOVE: Crossing the
line for third at Cairns
this year.
BELOW: Pete
celebrates victory at
Ironman 70.3 Sunshine
Coast last year.
I’M ALWAYS THINKING ABOUT MY ARM
CARRY – YOUR ARMS SET THE CADENCE
FOR YOUR LEGS, SO KEEP YOUR ARMS
LIGHT AND MOVING QUICKLY, SETTING A
QUICK RHYTHM. AS A RESULT, YOU’LL BE
LIGHTER ON YOUR FEET AND THEY’LL HAVE
A QUICKER CADENCE.KEEP YOUR ARMS
CLOSE AND IN FRONT OF YOUR BODY TOO.
PETE’S
RUNNING
TIP
“I’VE GOT CONFIDENCE NOW.
I’VE GOT TO THIS STEP NOW AND
NOW I’M GOING TO GET BACK TO
WHAT I WAS DOING IN 2012.”
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from them but also trying to get an edge as well.”
Whatever happens in Kona and in his
immediate professional future, Pete at least feels
he understands fatigue and the battle he will
continue fighting. He isn’t prepared to throw in
the towel merely because the going’s tough; he’s
going to get the absolute all from his body.
“I think I’m on top of it now and I’ve changed
my diet a lot. I was still being cautious this year
leading up to Cairns about how much I could
push my body, but that (Cairns) gave me a lot of
confidence. I was in the best shape I’ve been in
for years because I was able to push my body
and build up to doing five hours and feeling like
I did four years ago, for the first time. Now that’s
over and not only did the training go well, the race
went relatively well too,” he said.
“I’ve got confidence now. I’ve got to this step
now and now I’m going to get back to what I
was doing in 2012, in terms of training. I’ve always
trained less than others but if I can get back to
doing 80 to 90 per cent of what I was doing in
2012, that will still be much more than the last
few years, but it will still be enough to get me
competitive on the podium.”
Things are looking up for Pete. Don’t be
surprised if we’re looking up at him on the podium
at Kona this month.
“I’M STILL TRYING TO FIND
OUT WHAT I CAN GET OUT
OF MY BODY.”
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