Keat is a sub-9 hour regular

August 13, 2011

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — In 2009, Rebekah Keat recorded the second fastest women's Iron-distance time, trailing Chrissie Wellington's record-smashing 8:31:59 mark by just eight minutes. Two years later, Wellington reduced her world best time at Roth to 8:18, while Keat overcame early season physical woes to put another sub-9 hour Ironman-distance time in the career bank.

Keat has returned to Challenge Copenhagen to try to defend her 2010 title this Sunday in the Danish Capital. Keat was interviewed Friday at the futuristic Bella Sky Hotel.

Slowtwitch: How has your season gone so far?

Rebekah Keat: My season started a lot slower this year. I think it was a blessing in disguise. I had four weeks off around February. Had a bit of something like chronic fatigue. My body for once was demanding a break.

ST: You have a reputation for being indestructible. How were you feeling?

Rebekah: Before, when people talked about it to me, I used to say, "There is no such thing." They still don’t really know what it is. Basically my cortisol levels were really, really low. For 15 years I haven't had more than a week off. Even when I coached myself the only time I had off was one week. I wasn't doing a lot but I was doing 15 hours or something. Finally I got out of the hole.

ST: Could you jump back in and start your typical hard miles?

Rebekah: Amazing. I was told I could do what my mum could do. So I'd pester her every day: "Mum can we go for a run?" "Mum can we go for a swim?" "Can we go for a ride?"

ST: Was she up to it?

Rebekah: My poor mum trained more hours than she had at any time of her life. Poor dear got dragged out to many some sessions. So when the doctors asked me if I was training with your mum, I'd say "Yeah.." "OK then." I was actually quite sick so she wasn't too tired from training with me. But I made her do at least one thing a day – that's all I did for four weeks. My mum is my best friend, she and my twin sister.

ST: o how did you come out of it?

Rebekah: It delayed my season. But in the end it I think it helped because I felt amazing when I came back.

ST: How did your first races go?

Rebekah: My first big one was Cairns. But I did the Busselton half first and got third behind Jo Lawn and Felicity Ryan. That was two weeks after I got hit by a car.

ST: So you've had a set of obstacles to get started?

Rebekah: Getting hit by a car was another setback. I was running down some one-way streets at Mermaid Beach on the Gold Coast. I was doing 40k an hour and a car turned in front of me. This guy waving at a friend and he didn’t see me and turned in front of me. I hit on my helmet and shoulder into his windscreen. My shoulder was fine. It was just hammered. I was out for about two weeks and Brett [Sutton, her coach] got me to do as much as I could to move.

ST: So when dkid you finally get going?

Rebekah: I started racing two weeks after the crash at Busselton 70.3 and it went OK. I was pretty surprised actually. Then had four weeks prep for Cairns. I was a bit underdone. I really wasn't expecting to win that one. I think I did 9:15 and I ran about 3:15 and I biked about 5:04.

ST: What Cairns?

Rebekah: Cairns was amazing. Australia hadn't had a Challenge Race. I told people they gotta do a Challenge. There is no comparison there. I said that is why this year I decided Hawaii was out ands to focus on the Challenge races. I think this is my 13th Challenge event in my career. I'm pretty much the new female face of the Challenge here. I am filling in for Belinda Granger. She is the one who got me into doing them. I just really love them.

ST: What is the Cairns experience?

Rebekah: First of all it’s the scenery. The bike goes right on the coast. And we go right along the Great Barrier Reef. You can't see it from the road. But we were able to see it after the race. I did a tour of the island. We went snorkeling. Went in a Jet Sprint boat. The race scenery was amazing and even I looked at it on the bike. The run was quote tough. Quite similar to Hawaii.

ST: The times were not so fast. Must have been tough conditions?

Rebekah: The run was flat and very hot and the bike was quite undulating. The run is more in the city, by the Broadwater, which is like a harbor but there are no docks there.

ST: And they paid okay?

Rebekah: My biggest prize money in two years. the second biggest prize purse for an Iron distance event. I won 12,000 Euros.

ST: It seems as if proud Australian Ironman races have been downgraded. Is there any reason for optimism?

Rebekah: Melbourne is new and prestigious. It will offer 4000 points now. Urban Hotels are behind it. It's a shame what has happened to Ironman Australia, but Melbourne is a good thing for me. This year Ironman Oz had quarter points and little prize money. Now Melbourne has some money. I guess that it probably cost the government millions of dollars to have the race there. It's also good because you can qualify early for Hawaii. With good points and good money it will attract a huge professional field. Which is good for publicity.

ST: How good are your chances of defending your 2010 Copenhagen title – where you broke 9 hours?

Rebekah: I am healthy now. Fitter than I was at Roth and Cairns. Fingers crossed. I don't know if I can go as fast as last year. I think they’ve changed the course here a bit.

ST: Roth made history with Andreas Raelert and Chrissie Wellington setting World bests. How did you go?

Rebekah: I was third at Roth. With 2k to go I got passed by Julia Wagner, one of the German girls, an ex-ITU girl. I didn't know she was coming,. I went out way too hard. Didn’t need to run a 1:25 first 21k. [Keat blew up and ended up running 3:13:51]
Brett [Sutton, her famous coach] said "What were you thinking?" I said "Oh my God." He said "If you were fit I'd be happy for you." I said "Oh no. I didn't have the run fitness."

Still I was very happy with that.

ST: Did your top finish make you regret your decision to forego Kona this year?

Rebekah: Two months ago not going to Hawaii was fine. Now I am getting fitter and fitter and having a few pangs. But it is nice to see there are more girls from Team TBB winning Ironman races. Mary Beth [Ellis] and Amy [Marsh] and Caroline Steffen should all be top 10 at Ironman Hawaii.
ST: What makes the Copenhagen race special?

Rebekah: One thing is it is a Challenge event which has certain standards of ,making sure the athletes have a great experience. The other thing is the race director and promoter Thomas Olsen. Challenge doesn't look at first is to make a lot of money. They look for people who are passionate and these boys are very passionate. You can see that. They are so friendly like Felix and they want to help the pros and want to do everything they can to make the athletes happy and to do it properly.

ST: Who may get you here?

Rebekah: Jodie. Jodie Swallow. I know she did St. George this year and she didn’t finish. She led off the bike by 15 minutes but got a tear in her plantar fascia and had to stop. She has been nursing it for six months and it has not gone away. But any time she starts a race, she is dangerous.

ST: I hear you got a chapter in Chrissie's forthcoming book for your generosity in giving her a CO2 canister in 2008. No regrets?

Rebekah: None at all. Brett [Sutton, Keat's current coach and the man who coached Wellington to her first wins] tells me he will hit me on the head if I do it again. But I am sure I'd do it again, she is such a nice, generous person.

ST: Some of her teammates passed her by.

Rebekah: I know some top competitors looked the other way as they passed her by.

ST: Some people cannot belioeve she is so gpood.

Rebekah: People say Chrissie is so amazing. I say everybody who knows her and knows the sport knows she is clean. There is never any question marks about her.

ST: Why is that?

Rebekah: I think you just know. It's her personality and her values. And you look at her legs. I took a picture of her veins. You don't see guys with legs like that. There aren’t many men like that.

ST: Maybe Luc Van Lierde's calves.

Rebekah: Well there aren't many like her physical makeup. I talked to her mom and said "Were you a freak like her as a kid?" She said "Not really!" I said "Where did it come from?" She said "I don't really know." LAUGHS You look at the parents and they are so normal. Someone said she is like Tiger Woods. I said "No, mate. Tiger Woods loses." She probably never will lose an Ironman unless she flats or does a Paula Newby Fraser and completely bonks for dehydration or something.

ST: Brett Sutton must be racking his brains to find an athlete to take her down?

Rebekah: Brett built her and he knows what it will take to break her. But there is no one that can. It's true. I have to race her and I hate that fact. But you are racing for second. Now she is racing the men.

ST: In Roth she was 5th overall.

Rebekah: She is racing the men and I think she will be top 25 at Hawaii.

ST: You underestimated her. She has already posted a 23rd.

Rebekah: Think of that in tennis! It is impossible. I was joking with her and said I know someone who can beat her. She looked at me half smiling. I said "If you have a baby with Tom, that little girl is gonna kick your ass!" Just think of the genetics from those two! Because he is a physically superb individual as well. Wow that is going to be something! When I told her, she just laughed. That is someone who could beat her.