Newcastle triathlete Aaron Royle feeling heat in chase for Tokyo Olympic 2020 selection
A tent in the garage of a share house in a desert town in the US could help a Newcastle athlete secure a spot in sporting history at the Tokyo Olympics next year.
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When Newcastle triathlete Aaron Royle disappears into his garage every couple of days it’s not to tinker with a car.
Instead he’s joining six other athletes from around the world in a battle to test how far he can push his body in extreme heat.
The type of heat he expects to encounter in Tokyo next year, the brutal conditions he must embrace to achieve his goal of claiming a piece of Australian sporting history as the first male triathlete to win an Olympic medal of any colour.
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Royle is testing the limits of his body each week as he prepares it to cope with the same searing heat and hight humidity which will engulf him during the triathlon race in Tokyo next year.
In preparation he enters a makeshift simulation of these conditions in a heated tent equipped with a humidifier in a garage at his US training base in Flagstaff, Arizona, and trains for around three hours a week on a standing bike.
Each time he does it, Royle gets a little better at withstanding the heat, a little closer to his dream of an Olympic medal.
“There’s a tent set up with heaters and humidifiers and six of us just sweat away,” Royle revealed.
“It’s 34 degrees, 90 per cent humidity and we do an hour in a stationary bike around three times a week.
“I only lasted 45 minutes the first time before I timed out but I have adapted now.
“We are in the desert here so it is warm without the humidity. So another thing we do is to train in the heat of the day to get more heat stress.
“We’re also doing race strategy in the heat — how to best push ourselves in the heat, trying to find how to push though things.”
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Royle, who had his first taste of racing on the Tokyo Olympic course last week and finished in 38th place, is coached by former top pro Joel Filliol and trains alongside some of the leading triathletes in the world including world champion Mario Mola from Spain and his Australian teammate Jake Birtwhistle.
Royle’s ambition is to secure one of two discretionary positions up for grabs to the men’s team to compete in Tokyo in both the individual triathlon and the teams event.
The teams event will make its debut in Tokyo with Australia one of the top nations in the disciple after podium paces at the last three world championships.
“Australia is a big chance to medal in the teams,” Royle said.
“We’ve won a world title and been on the podium the last two years as well.
“Now it’s an Olympic event teams are getting better and better but so are well. For sure we’re a good chance here.”
Royle was the top placed Australia in the men’s triathlon race in Rio three years ago with his ninth place.
The 29-year-old says he still feels disappointed with the result.
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