Faris Al-Sultan, Ironman World Champion recently sat down with Bob Babbit and Paul Huddle of CompetitorRadio.com.
Al-Sultan talked about the upcoming Ironman World Championship race, his chances, and what it’s like to be a full-time professional athlete.
The most inspiring thing I took away from this interview was something he said near the end:
I think there are different ways to motivate people. Some people need to be angry on race day, and others need to be motivated by money or by whatever.
I think I’m. . .all the time I was on the start line and tried to be angry or to beat a certain athlete, it didn’t work. The best races I had when I was just happy to race. And you know, if I’m around nice people and I go to the black beach on Hawaii and I swim to Captain Cook, I’m happy.
If I’m happy, then I race good.
What makes a successful triathlete, at any level is no different than what makes a successful businessman, lawyer, chef, etc. If you’re happy with what you are doing, then you will be successful.
So for Al-Sultan, as for the rest of us, it’s not so much about the paycheck as it is doing something that we enjoy. Sure, there is money, and plenty of it if you cross the line in Kona first, but being happy produces plenty of other rewards.
I’ve always been a fan of Al-Sultan. I will be rooting for him this weekend. It’s always refreshing to see a down to Earth athlete.
You can listen to the entire interview with Al-Sultan at CompetitorRadio.com. As for the Ironman World Championship, the race is this Saturday. For race previews and more information, visit Ironman.com.
