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The authors also say there’s credible evidence that the following ergogenic aids improve strength and stamina: caffeine, creatine, sodium bicarbonate, beta-alanine and nitrates. The team highlights the emergence of vitamin D, too, showing that the science suggesting that vitamin D encourages muscle regeneration does add up. 

Finally, the team looks at compounds such as epicatechin, nicotinamide riboside, resveratrol, beta-hydroxy beta-methylbutyrate, phosphatidic acid and ursolic acid that may also promote skeletal muscle adaptations to endurance and strength training, though studies of these compounds have largely been limited to rats.

>>> Dark chocolate found to improve endurance

Benefits of organic meet

It’s official: organic meat is better for you than non-organic. A team of 25 researchers undertook a meta-analysis examining how nutritional content varied between organic and non-organic red meats. Though the evidence wasn’t strong enough to verify differences in antioxidant and mineral content, it did show that organic meat contains 47% more omega-3 than the non-organic alternative. This is good news for triathletes, because this polyunsaturated fatty acid has been proven to improve recovery, reduce muscle soreness after exercise and even increase fat metabolism. 

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Beetroot

First it was claimed that beetroot (rich in nitrates) sent endurance through the roof, then it was labelled a memory enhancer. Now nitrates have been shown to improve neuromuscular function.
A study from Ohio, USA, assessed isometric and dynamic contractions in 14 resistance-trained athletes before and after three days of nitrate supplementation. The nitrate hit resulted in higher mean peak electromyography amplitudes: electrical signals travelled that bit faster. So nitrate supplementation could enhance muscle activation, leading to greater power and speed.

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Last year Holland finished ahead of Katie Zaferes (USA) and Olympic Champion, Nicola Spirig (SUI) in a thrilling tight finish exactly a year ago.

She said: “This was the race that gave me the confidence to believe I could aim for the top of the podium, it was quite a break through last year, so it’s great to be back. This year it’s a sprint rather than Olympic distance, and my first race of the season, so it’s quite different, but I’m looking forward to getting out there.”

 The line up also includes Flora Duffy (BER), second on the WTS rankings thanks to her two fourth-place WTS finishes in Abu Dhabi and Gold Coast, who will be hopeful of a podium finish.

As one of the best cyclists in the field, in Gold Coast Duffy successfully led a breakaway of three away from the lead pack that allowed a healthy advantage going into the second transition zone. South Africa is a familiar setting for Duffy, as she trains down the road in Stellenbosch for much of the year, meaning Missing from the line up is Gwen Jorgensen

Full women’s start list

Meanwhile the question in the men’s race is can Mario Mola keep up his unbeatable run and make it three in a row at WTS Cape Town in South Africa this weekend? The South African city is offering up the first sprint-distance course of the season as the men vie for more valuable Olympic qualification points as they tackle a one-lap swim, five-lap bike and two-lap run.

Joining Mola is fellow Spaniard Fernando Alarza who joined Mola on the Gold Coast podium by capturing the silver in the final lap of the run. He also just missed the podium in Abu Dhabi with his fourth-place finish.

Hoping to beat Mola will be Britain’s Jonathan Brownlee, however he won’t be joined by his brother Alistair as still has not recovered from a virus and unfortunately won’t be able to defend his 2015 victory in Cape Town. Jonny will be joined by fellow Brit Adam Bowden.

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Full men’s start list

The women will get the 2016 Discovery World Triathlon Cape Town underway at 14:00 on Sunday April 24, while the men will follow at 16:30 local time. Follow all of the action live at triathlonlive.tv or follow us on Twitter.

WTS Cape Town 2015 in pictures

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Non Stanford and Vicky Holland secure spots for Rio

Although heavy storms greeted the athletes on their arrival into Cape Town, conditions were perfect for the race itself with temperatures of 20c and light winds. After her devastation at not been selected for the Olympic Games, 2014 WTS Cape Town winner Jodie Stimpson was racing purely to bolster her hopes of a strong position in the ITU series itself. Fellow Brits Vicky Holland, who won in Cape Town last year, and Non Stanford were looking to send a message to their opponents ahead of Rio having already qualified. The winner of WTS Gold Coast Helen Jenkins opted out of this race, as did current world champion Gwen Jorgensen.  

As the athletes dived off the pontoon, Bermudan Flora Duffy and Carolina Routier quickly broke away from the pack, and Duffy broke away again to exit the water in a rapid 8min 55secs. Routier was unable to ride out with Duffy, who rode off solo and established almost a 30sec lead. 

The rest of the ride followed the same pattern, with the chase pack not closing up any of the gap until the final 2km of the bike. Going out onto the run course 6secs in the lead, Duffy was quickly reigned in by four athletes, made up of all three Brit girls of Stimpson, Stanford and Holland as well as Anne Haug of Germany. 

It then became a case of how long Duffy could hold on, having exerted herself more on the bike and not possessing the run speed of the three Brits. It was now looking like a potential 1-2-3 for the British athletes, with Haug looking to put a spanner in the works. 

However it wasn’t so clear cut, as surprisingly Vicky Holland dropped off into 5th with Duffy holding 4th place going into the final 2km of the run. Non Stanford began to show her return to full fitness is nearly complete, and began to put the hammer down. Haug and Stimpson followed her every move, whilst Kirsten Kasper (USA) overtook Holland to move into 5th place. Stimpson then consolidated 2nd position, with Haug fading.

Stanford continued to pull clear and broke the tape in 59:49, whilst Stimpson held on for 2nd place and finished 7secs back. Flora Duffy capped off a remarkable performance by overtaking Haug, claiming her first podium this year after 4th place in the previous two rounds of the series.

It was Stanford’s first race of the WTS Series this year, and she expressed surprise at her victory in an interview with ITU Triathlon: “I’m not in my ideal race shape so came here to see how I’d get on, so it’s great to take the win. There’s more to come yet which is really exciting!” 

Despite the disappointment of missing out on a place in the British Olympic squad, Stimpson showed immense mental strength to finish in 2nd place. She said: “I want to thank my coaches for putting up with me the last couple of weeks, as I haven’t been the most pleasant person to be around! But I will train hard and concentrate on this year’s series and try to finish as high up as I can.”

Results, top 10. (Full results at triathlon.org)

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1. Non Stanford (GBR) – 59:49

2. Jodie Stimpson (GBR) – 59:56

3. Flora Duffy (BER) – 59:59

4. Anne Haug (GER) – 1:00:07

5. Kirsten Kasper (USA) – 1:00:08

6. Vicky Holland (GBR) – 1:00:15

7. Ali Ueda (JPN) – 1:00:21

8. Yurie Kato (JPN) – 1:00:26

9. Sarah True (USA) – 1:00:33

10. Kaidi Kivioja (EST) – 1:00:34

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What did you think of the race? Let us know in the comments!

With Alistair Brownlee sitting out due to illness, it was down to brother Jonny to lead the British contingent. Fellow Brit Adam Bowden was also racing, looking to impress selectors with an outside chance of gaining a place on the GB Olympic team. Richard Murray was also missing with an injury, as was Javier Gomez – otherwise it was a stacked field, with Mario Mola being the one to beat due to his blistering run speed. 

Off the pontoon in the sprint-distance race it was one long line for the duration of the 750m swim, with almost no breaks whatsoever in the 64-strong field. It was business as usual for super-swimmer Richard Varga (SVK), who exited the water in 8mins 54secs, followed closely by Henri Schoeman (RSA) and Jonny Brownlee. 

Mario Mola came out of the swim almost 30 secs down, and found himself in the chase group on the bike. The front pack included all those tipped for potential podium places barring Mola, with Brownlee pushing the pace early on. The chase group never managed to claw back more than 6 secs over the whole 20km bike leg, and it was Brownlee, Fernando Alarza (ESP), Dorian Coninx (FRA) and Shoeman who came into T2 first. 

Jonny Brownlee comes into T2 well positioned before going on to take 2nd place, with eventual winner Alarza going neck-and-neck. Image credit: ITU

The front group slimmed down to three after the first 1km of the run, with Brownlee, Alarza and Coninx breaking away. After 3km it was looking like Mola had left himself too much to do, 20secs back from the leaders but running blisteringly fast and under 14min pace for 5km. 

With under 1km to go Coninx finally dropped off the pace and Alarza put the hammer down on Brownlee, and continued all the way to hold on a massive first WTS victory, surely securing a spot on Spain’s Olympic team. Mola finished in 4th, putting in the fastest run split of the day (14:24) but ultimately unable to secure a place on the podium. Adam Bowden put in a solid performance to finish in 16th place, with an impressive sub 15min 5km run.

Speaking to ITU Triathlon, Jonny Brownlee commented: “I’ve felt pretty bad after what happened at Gold Coast, I’m just happy not to finish on a stretcher! But from where I was two weeks ago it’s a decent result, I worked really hard on the bike and hopefully I can turn it round in the races leading up to the Olympics.”

Alarza said: “I’m really happy today, I think now I’ve finally earned my spot for Rio and I can concentrate on training hard for that now.”

Results, top 10. (Full results at triathlon.org)

1. Fernando Alarza (ESP) – 54:12

2. Jonny Brownlee (GBR) – 54:17

3. Dorian Coninx (FRA) – 54:23

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4. Mario Mola (ESP) – 54:33

5. Pierre Le Corre (FRA) – 54:38

6. Henri Schoeman (RSA) – 54:40

7. Aurelien Raphael (FRA) – 54:48

8. Vicente Hernandez (ESP) – 54:52

9. Richard Varga (SVK) – 54:53

10. Andrea Salvisberg (SUI) – 54:55

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The course was a sprint distance (750m swim, 20km run, 5k run) and the two golds were won by George Peasgood (PT4) and Andy Lewis (PT 2), while the silvers were won by Joe Townsend and Clare Cunningham (PT4)won silver, collectinvaluable ranking points that will help qualify slots for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games. Unfortunately, Lauren Steadman was unable to start due to illness.

Peasgood used his swim and bike strength to set up a big lead, which he held on to during the run, and won by a comfortable margin of well over a minute from Alexander Yalchik of Russia, while in his section Andy Lewis was an emphatic winner, being the fastest swimmer, cyclist and runner on the day.

Joe Townsend finished second behind five-time ITU world champion, Bill Chaffey of Australia in the PT1 event. Afghanistan veteran, Townsend was the fastest over the bike and run sections, but Chaffey’s superior swim set up his victory. After a strong start Clare Cunningham she lost time on the bike, but ran well to secure silver.

The next round of the ITU World Paratriathlon Event Series will coincide with the ITU World Triathlon Series event in Yokohama, 14-15 May.

The results

PT1 Men
1. Bill Chaffey, AUS, 58:53
2. Joseph Townsend, GBR, 1:00:43
3. Benjamin Lenatz, GER, 1:08:11

PT2 Men
1. Andrew Lewis, GBR, 1:10:47  
2. Brant Garvey, AUS, 1:14:08
3. Lionel Morales, ESP, 1:14:54

PT4 Men
1. George Peasgood, GBR, 1:02:33
2. Alexander Yalchik, RUS, 1:03:56
3. Carlos Rafael Viana, BRA, 1:04:29

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PT4 Women
1. Kate Doughty, AUS, 1:12:10
2. Clare Cunningham, GBR, 1:14:21
3. Claire Mclean, AUS, 1:15:47

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The research found elite athletes approached training with a “never satisfied” attitude, whereas ‘almosts’ might avoid challenging training exercises, while following an injury or a failure to perform, high performers were determined to get back to their sports, stronger than ever. Low achievers, on the other hand, often expressed surprise at their failures, telling how they lost enthusiasm after such incidents.

Despite these differences in the athletes’ attitudes, there was surprisingly little variation in the nature or number of the challenges themselves. All had roughly comparable traumatic incidents during their careers. More than the challenges themselves, the differences came down to how the athletes reacted to these obstacles and the champions’ positive, “learn from it” attitudes.

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“We’ve found that there are universal psychological characteristics amongst those who are aspiring to get to the top,” says lead author Professor Dave Collins from the Institute of Coaching and Performance at the University of Central Lancashire. “We have a good idea of what makes people excellent and how we can help them reach peak performance.”

Through interviews Collins and his team sought to find distinguishing characteristics between the best of the best, the good, and those that didn’t quite make the cut. For each participant, they collected information about career trajectory, perceived challenges and the participant’s reactions to such obstacles. Interview questions also explored participants’ commitment to their sports and their interactions with coaches and families.

“From our research, we’re assembling a set of rules to guide what a coach should be doing and what skills an athlete should end up with,” says Collins. “Furthermore, these characteristics hold true for other fields as well, from sports to music to any environment.”

While challenge may be integral on the path to success, this research suggests that challenge is not sufficient in itself. An aspiring athlete’s attitude towards challenge is what most distinguishes the champions from the rest.

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Sports psychology: less thinking equals better results

 “This is a very time-efficient workout strategy,” says lead author Martin Gibala, a professor of kinesiology at McMaster University in Canada. “Brief bursts of intense exercise are remarkably effective.”

The team of scientists set out to determine how sprint interval training (SIT) compared to moderate-intensity continuous training (MICT). They examined key health indicators including cardiorespiratory fitness and insulin sensitivity, a measure of how the body regulates blood sugar.

A total of 27 sedentary men were recruited and assigned to perform three weekly sessions of either intense or moderate training for 12 weeks, or to a control group that did not exercise).

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The McMaster team has previously shown that the SIT protocol, which involved three 20-second ‘all-out’ cycle sprints, was effective for boosting fitness. The workout totalled just 10 minutes, including a 2-minute warm-up and 3-minute cool down, and two minutes of easy cycling for recovery between the hard sprints.

The new study compared the SIT protocol with a group who performed 45 minutes of continuous cycling at a moderate pace, plus the same warm-up and cool down. After 12 weeks of training, the results were remarkably similar, even though the MICT protocol involved five times as much exercise and a five-fold greater time commitment.

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 “Our study shows that an interval-based approach can be more efficient — you can get health and fitness benefits comparable to the traditional approach, in less time.”

Frodeno is only man to have ever won both the Olympic gold medal and the Ironman World Championship, and also won another honour last week with the Laureus Action Sportsperson of the Year Award, the first triathlete to receive a Laureus Award. He is also reported to be going for the for long-distance world record at Challenge Roth

“I’m looking forward to heading back to my old training grounds. I’ve spent many weeks on the island, and at Club La Santa, with the German team, preparing for the summer and always enjoyed its hospitality.”

Frodeno will join more than 1800 registered athletes from over 60 countries, including our staff writer Jack Sexty. Reckon you can take him on Jack…?! 

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