Nutri-Grain ironman TJ Hendy making own mark in sport dad Trevor ruled
HE was raised on tales of his father’s freakish athletic ability but TJ Hendy says it has taken 21 years for him to figure out a way to forge his own way in the sport his dad dominated for decades.
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HE was raised on tales of his father’s freakish athletic ability and legendary surf success but TJ Hendy says it has taken 21 years for him to figure out how to forge his own way in the sport his dad Trevor dominated for decades.
Hendy earned a reputation as his own man — and one of Australian ironman’s top competitors — with victory in the opening leg of the Nutri-Grain ironman series late last year.
But the 21-year-old, who shares a close relationship with his legendary father, says he has learned constantly trying to prove himself because of his famous surname is the worst thing he can do.
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“Now and then I let it affect me and it takes all my power away,’’ Hendy said.
“You have to try and be your own man. Trying to be as good as a legend like dad doesn’t serve me well.”
What has served Hendy well, however, is taking responsibility for his form and feats.
“I’ve tried not to sabotage myself with things like eating the wrong thing or not turning up for training so I have an excuse for not doing well,’’ he said.
“I also saw I couldn’t use the dad thing as an excuse any longer.’’
Hendy says he was a late starter to ironman because he sometime struggled as a child to love the sport his father ruled.
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“I remember as a Nipper I went down and I was so overdone by the energy of it,’’ he said.
“I wasn’t just a kid running around and racing. I was the kid standing by the side of a great ironman.’’
But at 17, watching a round of the Nutri-Grain series on TV, Hendy says he felt the sport lure him in.
“I got really excited. I started to think about it and wanted to have a go and started to turn up to sessions,’’ he said.
Hendy says his training partnership with multiple Coolangatta Gold winner Ali Day at Surfers Paradise — the site of Sunday’s fifth round of the Nutri-Grain series — has helped springboard him to success this season.
The pair are ranked No.1 and No.2 going into Sunday’s eliminator racing with Hendy well versed in what he has to do to have a shot at winning his first overall Nutri-Grain crown in Sydney on February 25.
“Basically I have to win and he has to finish outside the top three for me to still have a shot,’’ he said. “Matt Bevilacqua and Shannon Eckstein are in a similar satiation so it’s going to be interesting.’’