TRIATHLON - Warriner back at work again

It only took a few seconds of punishment for the body to remember, then the competitive instincts Sam Warriner has become renowned for kicked in again - right on schedule.
Warriner made a cameo appearance at the Auckland Marathon yesterday, winning a 10km "fun run" event staged in conjunction with the full distance race, then promptly jumped on a plane bound for Mexico where she will contest the Cancun world cup triathlon event this weekend.
The race in Cancun comes almost as an afterthought following her recent successful Olympic Games qualifying campaign but the decision to jump back on the international circuit isn't just some post-season flight of fancy.
Warriner wants to boost her world ranking from No.3 to No.2, just to prove a point to her rivals.
She may even roll out for another world cup event next month if she doesn't cement a No.2 ranking spot in Cancun.
"Everything from now on is about getting ready for the Olympics next year. World cup points won't matter so much next season because it will all be about getting ready for one big race, so in a way this is my last chance to really aim at a world cup ranking season," Warriner said.
"Obviously I will still race the world championships and be on the world cup circuit next season but the main goal now is the Olympics, so this year is my world cup year," she said.
But to stage a late comeback has been hard work for Warriner, especially after an emotional and physically draining campaign just to get her Beijing ticket stamped by the New Zealand Olympic Committee.
Warriner experienced the highs of world cup wins and world championship disaster this season before nailing her spot in the Olympic team for Beijing, then came home to a well-earned rest.
It took some convincing to get her back into full training again for the trip to Cancun.
"I took two weeks off completely and suddenly realised just how mentally and physically drained and tired I was. It was great coming home to my partner and friends but then it was really hard work getting back into training again. The first week or so was terrible, then everything started to click again," she said.
The run yesterday, which she blasted out in 35 minutes despite easing up for the last three kilometres, was a gentle reminder of the punishment to come this weekend. It was enough to whet her appetite though.
"I felt really good, quite comfortable even though I went out quite hard. I eased off, I wasn't about to hammer myself (yesterday) - the real race for me is in Mexico."
Warriner will be joined by a stellar cast in Cancun. World No.2 Emma Moffat has entered, as have Laura Bennett and Elina Ditmar, her closest world cup rivals this season. The only big name missing is world No.1 Vanessa Hernandez.
The race in Mexico isn't just for world cup ranking bragging rights either. The conditions in Mexico will be hot and humid, which is exactly what Warriner is anticipating in Beijing for the Olympic race in August next year.
"One of the things that we found we need to work on is my ability to cope with the heat and to come up with strategies to deal with the heat. So I will be trying techniques to cope with the heat in Mexico that we might use for Beijing," she said.