Jared Rego

Flora Duffy has reflected on her 2019 season and her goals for the upcoming year in which she hopes to medal in the Olympic Games in Tokyo.

Duffy was interviewed by the International Triathlon Union in advance of the first World Triathlon Series event in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in March.

The 33-year-old spent the majority of last year nursing a long-term injury but made a successful comeback from her foot issue, performing strongly in the four races in which she competed.

She thought her injury concerns were behind her when preparing for the first race World Triathlon Series race in Abu Dhabi last March, but she suffered a setback.

“I thought it was just the beginning and the injuries were behind me, but I found the worst was yet to come,” Duffy recalls. “I felt very sad and depressed.”

Duffy made her long-awaited return from injury at the Tokyo Olympic Test Event in August, winning in controversial fashion after British leaders Jessica Learmonth and Georgia Taylor-Brown were disqualified for causing a deliberate tie.

The Bermudian followed that up with a solid performance at the World Triathlon Series Grand Final in Lausanne, Switzerland, finishing fifth, before winning the Banyoles ITU World Cup in the north of Spain and the Beijing International Triathlon.

She then became the first triathlete to win a fifth Xterra World Championship title after reclaiming her crown in Kapalua, Hawaii.

“I wasn’t fully fit,” she said. “It was really daunting. I didn’t know if I could run the full ten kilometres [in Tokyo], given the volume of running I had done was very low.

“It was a really scary moment for me to get back out there, where everyone was one hundred per cent and I was just coming in around 75 per cent. It was great to get back there, and, finally have some momentum behind me.”

“The race was tense — on the swim, which is usually a strength of mine, hanging on to the front group; on the bike, not feeling as sharp; and then on the run, which was shortened to five kilometres, not knowing if I could do it. The run shortage was a huge relief for me, not because of the heat, but just because I knew I could do it, this is a nice stepping stone.

“To cross third [before being awarded the win] was a huge confidence boost for me and just showed that I still had it because, after a long period out, can I even still do this, am I even the same Flora. It was a huge weight over my shoulders, for sure.”

After Tokyo Test Event, Duffy went on to compete in the WTS Grand Final.

“Lausanne is a very difficult course,” she said. “It’s amazing, but, unfortunately for me, I couldn’t hit it at 100 per cent fitness. However, it was great to go there and be part of it. I felt a little bit more like myself, I attacked the bike course as best I could.

“For me, right now, I don’t have all the cards to play. My run is not there, so I have to do well on the bike course. I think I overrode on the bike, made a few nutritional errors, not getting enough in. I just had to survive the 10k run; it was absolute brutal survival for me.”

She was also buoyed by her showing at the Banyoles World Cup.

“I literally didn’t know until half-an-hour before the race, at 4.30pm I was notified and the race began at 5pm,” Duffy said.

“The mental preparation is something I need to work on, even just getting back into the racing mentality of being able to trust your ability and able to dig deep.

“In terms of lining up and being excited to race, that is easy for me, I haven’t raced for a long time. It was great to be back out there and finish on the podium. I felt more like myself, a bit more assertive. There was good sensations yesterday.

As for 2020, Duffy sets her sights on the Olympics and becoming the first Bermudian to medal at the Summer Games since boxer Clarence Hill claimed bronze at the Montreal Olympics in 1976.

“Next season will be a big one for me,” she added. “The Olympics is my main event, I have that circled and starred on my calendar.

“That’s probably the only thing I haven’t achieved in my triathlon career. It’s always been my dream to win an Olympic medal, so everything is geared towards that.

“Since I am coming back from a serious injury, I have to be very careful with how I build my running up, not rushing it, just gradually building it up so I can be healthy and racing at 100 per cent early next year.

“That’s what you need, consistency of training day in and day out. It doesn’t have to be great, but I just want get back to being able to do that, which I haven’t done since May 2018.”