Christian Kemp took the title at the 2013 Asia Pacific 70.3 Championships in Auckland, NZ and followed it up with a win at the Urban Hotels Geelong Long Course Triathlon. We had a few words with the Aussie who is known by his friends as Kempy.
Slowtwitch: We are glad to have you.
Kempy: Thanks Herbert, glad to be here and thanks for having me.
ST: Nice win in Geelong. Is this now turning into a routine?
Kempy: Thank you. I have certainly put together a great month over late January early February and couldn’t have dreamed of a better start to 2013. That being said, it’s very early in the year and I have a huge amount of hard work ahead to perform at the pointy end of the year – September, October.
ST: Which one of these wins means more to you then? Auckland because it was your first big win, or Geelong because it was back in Australia?
Kempy: Definitely Auckland. It has the Asia-Pacific regional 70.3 title attached to it and it was my first big win with my coach there. The race didn’t go as smoothly as Geelong and I had to fight a little harder for the race result. Running stride for stride with a double Olympic medalist on his home soil was also significant for my development. So for me it’s definitely Auckland. I’m very proud to be the Asia-Pacific 70.3 champion and I am motivated to represent that prestigious title with the performances it deserves. The nice things about Geelong though apart from being an Australian title is that it proved to me and others that Auckland wasn’t a fluke!
ST: Do you think your competitors might paint a big target on you now?
Kempy: I’m not too sure I deserve the big target on me just yet. There are some phenomenal athletes that compete over the 70.3 and Ironman distance races and I have yet to perform on the bigger stages such as Las Vegas or Kona. Once I get a good result at one or both of these then maybe I might have a bigger target on me, but as of right now I don’t believe it is warranted.
ST: What is actually your next race?
Kempy: My next race will be the Asia Pacific Ironman Championships in Melbourne on March 24th. It’s my first time competing at the full Ironman distance for me and I’m excited but also a little nervous about such a long race. I’m hoping to have a great debut race but more importantly I am just trying to learn as much as I can so that in the future I can compete for the big titles over the Ironman distance.
ST: I must admit, when you won Auckland 70.3 I had to look up your name, and while that is a bit embarrassing, somehow I think I wasn’t alone.
Kempy: Ha ha ha. Spare a thought for poor Mike Reilly at Auckland who had to figure it all out on the fly whilst commentating. That’s not embarrassing, it’s an accurate reflection of my past performances and completely justified. I have not been able to perform at this level over the past couple of seasons. I’m just happy now that the hard work of the previous two years is starting to pay dividends and I’m looking forward to hopefully continue this form.
ST: Vineman 2012 was likely your best recent result last season with a 4th place against pretty tough competition. Is that accurate?
Kempy: Yes, that would be accurate. I finished 4th at Vineman last year to some other fantastic Australian athletes. There was a bit of a joke there last year that it was the Australian/New Zealand Championships as so many of the pro field was from one of those two countries! That race was one of the toughest I have ever had and I was really proud of my performance there last year. Although I missed the podium, it gave me confidence that I could compete with the best at a high intensity.
ST: What do you think has made the difference for you to step up to the very top?
Kempy: I think it’s a combination of a few things, but mostly comes down to an excellent support team. Firstly, I am finally injury free for more than a few months, which has not been the case over the past couple of years. But after spending some time with my physio in Sydney and giving the injury enough time to properly heal, things are finally great. I have been able to consistently put great volume together week in week out and have benefited from the strength that has given me. Secondly, I have learnt to be much better with my nutrition pre, during and post racing. I owe many thanks in this area to Darryl from Shotz who has worked with me to iron out the chinks.
ST: What did you do wrong in terms of nutrition?
Kempy: In terms of nutrition I just don’t think I really knew what do to. It was really hit and miss. After having discussed my previous strategies with Darryl I was clearly underdoing it in terms of calorie consumption and also proper hydration. I have now started to digest far more on the bike, in terms of calories, which has allowed me to run with strength and confidence. I have also increased my salt intakes as I was having sporadic episodes of cramping during races in the past. The other major thing that he has helped me with is eating for recovery so that I am able to turn around from sessions week after week.
ST: Will you again be based out of Laguna Beach come summer in North America?
Kempy: No, not this year. I will be based out of Las Vegas this year.
ST: How did you end up in Laguna Beach in the first place?
Kempy: I originally ended up in Laguna Beach thanks to a great mate of mine, Chris Fetter, offering up his place to stay when I first started travelling to the US. We met many years ago when I went on an exchange program to the US to run track and field. He is a great athlete himself and provides me with a fantastic training partner several times during the week. He has now moved to Las Vegas and that’s the reason I will now be heading there.
ST: Are you not worried about having too many distractions in the sin city?
Kempy: Ha ha ha, not really. I am not really a big partier or drinker in general so I don’t think it should be a problem but for some of my Sydney training partners that could be a different story. I know that my focus is clearly on my athletic endeavors currently and I am not too sure I will be hanging out down on “the strip” all that often if at all. Outside of “the strip” Vegas is a hot, hilly and windy desert! I’m sure my coach will take advantage of that and provide me with some seriously tough sessions.
ST: You mentioned a track and field exchange program in the US. Who did you compete for and how hard was it then to adjust to life in the USA?
Kempy: During my exchange program, I competed for Mission Viejo High School in Orange County. I was blessed to have run with such an amazing Track and Field program and also to be there during a time when one of the best distance runners in the country during that time was also there, Mark Gleason. Mark certainly taught me a lot about running and how to run in a competitive way and I can’t thank him enough for that. I didn’t have too much trouble at all adjusting to life in the USA - I loved it and still do! It was an opportunity and time in my life that has shaped it ever since. On an interesting note, I also competed against Jesse Thomas at this time when we were both in high school running track. Ironic and cool that we should meet again in a different sport so many years later.
ST: What were some of your best running times?
Kempy: I completed my junior year of high school at Mission Viejo. My best times during this year were as follows:
800m – 1:54.86;
1,200m – 3:06.02 (Part of Distance Medley);
1,600m – 4:13.56; and
3,200m – 9:21.70.
ST: All well with sponsors?
Kempy: Sponsors…..what are they? Ha ha, no seriously I have struggled in the past to attract any significant sponsors. Given my past results though that is probably justified. I hope that after the past month though there is a terrific business out there that could see some merit in using me as an ambassador for their products.
ST: Well, do you hear them knocking now?
Kempy: I have heard a little more noise at the door when compared to the past but I still am working on securing a few major ones. It is certainly an exciting time though, hopefully I keep racing well in the near future and pique the interest of a few more. I’m certainly happy to talk with anyone who is keen to bring me on board!
ST: Is there anything else we should know?
Kempy: It would be remiss of me not to mention the amazing squad of guys that I train with in Australia, that have ridden the ups and downs (pardon the pun) over the last couple of years with myself and my coach, Chris Hanrahan at pb3. As I mentioned earlier, a strong support network means so much to every pro, and these guys whom I have known for years, have opened their homes up to me when I had nothing, and stuck by me, have been the difference and the reason I am not an accountant or something like that!
The website for Christian Kemp is kempy.com.au and you can follow him on Twitter at @kempytri
Folks interested in sponsoring Christian Kemp can reach out to this editor and he will make the connections.
