At Ironman Frankfurt and at Kona, Jan Frodeno outraced Sebastian Kienle by 10 and 11 minutes on the swim and the run. At Frankfurt he lost 20 minutes to Kienle on the bike leg and at Kona he lost 16 minutes to his German countryman on the ride. In both cases, the 2008 Olympic gold medalist finished 3rd to Kienle’s victories. On both days, the bike leg was his Achilles heel - he lost considerable time dealing with flats and, at Kona, one stand down 4 minute penalty.
A sharp student of his new workplace – the Ironman – Frodeno had words of praise for his friend Sebastian Kienle’s victories and the spirit with which he races. And, Frodeno says, his appetite is whetted for more Ironman clashes with his friend because both he and Kienle have lots of room for improvement.
Slowtwitch: What happened to you on the bike ay Kona? Kienle posted a 4:20:46 split and you were 16:35 slower. He’s not that much better than you, is he?
Jan Frodeno: With a puncture you have a stop and go. So that takes a fair bit of time and momentum. And with the penalty, you take off four minutes and the stop and go itself is not that fast. And, to be honest, I had s shocking day on the bike. I couldn’t hold my [power] numbers.
ST: How did all those problems affect your attitude to the race?
Jan: I’ve never received a penalty before in my life. And I disagreed with it too. Mentally it blew me down. I struggled big time to come to terms with it and to keep fighting and to recover. I thought there is a tradition in Hawaii. You can’t call off your race because things aren’t going well. You can’t go home. It’s not cool to do that. Really I think without those things maybe, it could have been quite interesting. So I am looking forward to coming back.
ST: You believe there is nothing wrong with your cycling ability. Without those problems, you might have been close enough to Sebastian that your run might prevail?
Jan: Well I read your [preview] article. Which was, by the way, wrong because I had three punctures in Frankfurt – not two. And if you take off three punctures, and having to wait for a service car…. I am not saying I am as strong as Sebastian. Sebastian is a machine. But if I am looking at the numbers I am pushing [watts] and my own aerodynamics, I believe I can be in his territory. That is the only thing that got me home today really. But I think for a first year I am not doing too badly.
ST: Good on you to continue to race seriously even though the odds were stacked against you after your troubles on the bike leg. .
Jan: Exactly. And mileage helps. After putting more miles in during winter training, things will be better. I am happy with my coach, Dan Lorang. He is the German national coach. He knows a lot about short distance and a lot about long distance as will lead me in the right direction.
ST: Were you discouraged about your trouble-plagued bike rides at Frankfurt and Kona?
Jan: I am looking forward to the future. I am looking forward to improving things. I know my bike form has improved come from here to here [Frodeno gestures with hands wide apart] this year alone.
ST: How will you get better?
Jan: If I look at the [power] numbers I was pushing in January, and look at the numbers I am pushing now, I’m really happy with the way it is going. It is unfortunate I haven’t been able to show it in the long distances races simply because of mechanical issues. And in this case, a penalty. But I’ll get there.
ST: What is the significance of Sebastian’s victory? Was it about winning this race on the bike -- like Normann Stadler?
Jan: I disagree that Sebastian is from the same mold as Normann Stadler. Because Sebastian can really run. His run time today [2:54:36 - Stadler ran 2:55:03 to win in 2006] was a good solid marathon. And that did the job today.
ST: Kienle has broken 2:50 in an Ironman run. Will that translate to an even better race at Kona in the future?
Jan: He has done it once at Frankfurt [2:49:35 this year while winning in 7:55:14]. That's a solid marathon time. It shows his potential. He has been around long distance for a while. But he is improving all the time. And that is what makes him so dangerous. He can ride the bike and he can run. You can’t give him the kind of lead he is getting at T2 at the moment.
ST: Thomas Hellriegel, like Jürgen Zäck, was called the überbiker and rode 4:29:37 in a vicious wind to force Mark Allen to run 2:42 to win art Kona in 1995. But all Hellriegel had left in him was a 2:58 marathon that first year. The next year Hellriegel ran 2:46.55 and led Luc Van Lierde to the 23-mile mark before being passed. When Hellriegel finally won in 1997, his bike split was a conservative 4:47:57 in high winds and then he ran 2:51:56 to beat Zäck. Hellriegel ultimately balanced out his swim, bike and run splits and proved he was a fine all-around triathlete.
Jan: That is the thing. Triathlon’s always a balance. I understand. I just believe Sebastian is a better and more balanced triathlete than Normann. That is why Sebastian is dangerous and why he has a great future ahead of him.
ST: Are you daunted by the Ironman distance and the pain that goes with it?
Jan: To be honest it is only my second Ironman ever. So, the pain in Frankfurt was much worse for me. The second half of the marathon was absolutely awful. Whereas here, the first half of my marathon was bad. [In Frankfurt, Frodeno was 4 minutes faster than Kienle in the swim and 6 minute faster on the run. But, similar to his problems in Kona, Frodeno had three flats in Frankfurt which left him 21 minutes slower than Kienle’s bike split, which left him 3rd – just like Kona]. For me it was awful. I just had one of those days where I didn’t have much. It only came together in the second half of the marathon.
ST: Where does that leave you going forward?
Jan: That obviously gives me confidence because I've smelled that I can do it. And I can deal with the pain. I am happy – it sounds funny -- I like the pain. It is part of endurance sports. That ongoing mental conversation between your legs and your head is something I love to master and hope to get better at in the future.
ST: Since Sebastian is a friend, you must be happy for him?
Jan: It’s great for me as his friend. I love to see him do well because I have great respect for him and the way he races. And the way he just goes -- ‘scuse my language -- balls to the wall. And he is a nice guy. Even from a professional point of view, if he is the world champion from Germany, that puts triathlon back on the map again in our country. It’s good for everyone. But I can honestly and truly say I am happy for him because he is a deserving champion.
ST: Can you shed some light on the mystery why Kienle had such a bad day at the Ironman 70.3 World Championship at Mt. Tremblant?
Jan: In Mt. Tremblant Javier Gomez and I took him out of the race. He had the same gap in half the distance swim as we did here [4 minutes]. Javier and I planned to take him out of the race. Over 90k on the bike, we kept him at that distance because we have the speed and the intensity required. But here in Kona, it is a different thing. If you look at Sebastian, he has one swim speed. He swims just as well here as he does in a 70.3. Whereas I have an extra gear to call upon when I need it. And it came in handy at Mt. Tremblant.
ST: Where does that leave Kienle, the 2-time Ironman 70.3 World Champion and first time Ironman World Champion?
Jan: That is the thing. He has slowly but surely become a true Ironman triathlete. When I left him in Mt. Tremblant, I said, ‘Shit I think I've left a wounded lion.’
ST: He did not pout or complain. Perhaps a cheerful wounded lion?
Jan: Well he wasn’t cheerful then. And it seems to have rung true.
ST: I mean by cheerful he is very sportsmanlike.
Jan: Absolutely.
ST: He makes no excuses and goes out to kill you next time?
Jan: That is the mark of a champion. You come back and kick everyone’s ass.
