This blog post was written by Eva Goodisson - follow her journey via her IG @eva_goodisson.

MY JOURNEY INTO TRIATHLON

From a competitive swimmer, to track runner and now triathlete – sport for me was about giving everything a go and enjoying it. Now at 23 I have found triathlon and fallen in love, but man I am glad I took my time because I enjoyed every step along the way.

High performance sport is hard! It takes focus, sacrifice and your full attention, and isn’t something that lasts forever. Growing up as a competitive swimmer, there were early mornings, killer swim camps, tears, laughter, friendship, pb's, terrible swims and a lot of laps. Swimming was great. It taught me diligence, focus, how to get up at 5am, how to train hard and get results, sacrifice sleepovers with early training so I could make nationals. It also was hard to keep going when friends quit at 16. Swimming was a great taste of competitive sport but hard to maintain with so much sacrifice and long hours from a young age. I had the aerobic fitness to excel in other sports, which is when track running and cross country came to play.

I had success quite quickly and enjoyed the challenge and excitement of a new sport. At the same time I wanted to keep up with hockey, netball and tennis because it was social, fun, kept me busy and improved my athletic skills in all areas. As my running improved, I was suggested to take up cycling and start triathlon. I slowly chipped away at learning new skills but never fully committed to triathlon during high school, knowing that most triathletes peak later in life, and I had undiscovered potential track running. With a few successful races, such as winning the u16 national 3000m with little training, I decided to take up a division 1 track scholarship at the University of California, Davis. This was an experience I will never forget.

Year 1 all the track running horror stories of abusing coaches, eating disorders and overtraining came true. I continued to stay in contact with triathlon in New Zealand to keep my options open and stay updated. I began to seriously doubt my decision, but for the next 3 years we had a female British coach who nurtured my injury prone and low milage background into the conference freshman of the year and number 2 and 3 3000m and 5k indoor track Davis All-Time record lists. I was an ‘honorary’ member of the division 1 swim team and triathlon team to continue to progress with triathlon, expand my training variation and social interactions too. Not to mention the academic side of things was amazing - I was part of a sports research lab, honors program and did my thesis in sustainable marketing and was constantly surrounded by inquisitive minds and never-ending curiosity.

The diversity in all aspects of my life at a high level allowed me to thrive and push my limits in the US. Having focus not just on the track but also through study, travel and becoming part of American culture kept me positive and engaged in everything. Having multiple areas of focus away from sport I found was healthy. I could get marginal gains from acing an exam or traveling to a new state that propelled me to be further motivated in the gym and on the track. This small piece of wisdom will come with me as I continue to develop as an athlete.

All the while, there was an opportunity in New Zealand womens triathlon. This became particularly apparent during the Tokyo Olympics and was something I wanted to be a part of. Post-graduation, I returned to New Zealand and fully committed to triathlon for the first time. It is still scary to think about and adjust to a full time athlete lifestyle, but I have big goals for Paris 2024 and I’m excited to get into it! I am also very grateful for all the support I have had along the way and for taking my time to get here. I wouldn’t trade the swimming, team sports and especially the US track scholarship experience for any short cuts!

This blog post was written by Eva Goodisson - follow her journey via her IG @eva_goodisson.