Ironman: McCauley and Siddall set for another fascinating duel

USA's Jocelyn McCauley won last year's Ironman new Zealand in Taupo. Photo / Delly Carr

All signs point to another great battle between top seeds Jocelyn McCauley, of the US, and Laura Siddall, of Great Britain, when the cannon goes to start the 34th edition of Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman New Zealand in Taupo tomorrow.First and second respectively in 2017, both have strong connections to New Zealand and will divide loyalties around the course, with McCauley recalling childhood memories of the region, long before she dreamed she might spend a day swimming, biking and running her way into the hearts of locals.

"There is a peace that I always have when I land in Taupo. Taupo and New Zealand hold a special place in my heart. I fell in love with the region as a 12-year-old when my parents brought us here to explore.

"I then fell in love with the race itself when I made my debut as a pro athlete here. This race has the most community support of any race I have been to, hands down," McCauley said.

She knows she will race under a different kind of pressure as defending champion but is not changing her approach in any way.

"I don't think you should mentally treat any race differently. It's always about focusing on the process to get the outcome that I am best capable of. That's always the biggest objective, focus on the process and keep improving. Winning is great of course, we all want to win, but winning takes care of itself if we keep improving and focusing on what is controllable."

British athlete Laura Siddall is expected to be among the front-runners at Ironman New Zealand this weekend. Photo / File

Great Britain's Siddall also has a liking for New Zealand, so much so that she is considering options to make her visits a little more official.

"Funnily enough I am looking at visas at the moment. I am on an Australian permanent residency, but it doesn't last much longer, so I am looking at other options of trying to get a visa in New Zealand, so it gives me more options to come and go.

"I love it over here. I base myself in Christchurch over the Southern Hemisphere summer from November to mid-May. I love the training, it is easy, convenient, you can ride and run from your door and everything is accessible with lots of swimming options," Siddall said.

McCauley, meanwhile, is coming off a good training block but knows that Ironman can throw anything at you at any time and is prepared to face adversity.

The 29-year-old is expecting a different race to unfold in the absence of anyone who might tear the swim course apart.

"The race is always different depending on the conditions and the field. There aren't any amazing swimmers that I know of, like Meredith [Kessler], in the field this year. My swim form has drastically improved from last year and I was able to show some of that in Kona and will be looking for a fast swim no matter the water conditions."

Siddall takes a similar view to McCauley into the race, focusing first on herself and what she can control, while also knowing what is happening around her.

"Yes, you have to have half an eye on your competitors and react to them, but I came off the bike in a pack of five in the lead and I knew on paper the rest were faster runners than me. They set off at what seemed like a bat out of hell and I thought I was running pretty well but just not at their pace.

"At that point it was about sticking to the plan and keeping rhythm with three odd hours of marathon to go."

Kellogg's Nutri-Grain Ironman New Zealand

Date: Saturday, March 3
Distance: Swim 3.8km, Bike 180km, Run 42.2km
Start time: 6.45am
Location: Northern Domain, Taupo