Multisport: American champ right at home in 'tri-town'

Jo Lawn is not boasting when she says she is in the best shape of her life.

Her training times suggest it but she is not taking anything - such as a ground-breaking third-straight New Zealand Ironman win - for granted.

But, it seems, the people in Taupo won't have it any other way.

Lawn, 31, has been adopted by the "tri-town" as one of their own.

"It is great. A lady in the supermarket recognised me and asked if I was going to win again," said Lawn who has abandoned her US base in favour of returning to New Zealand - and Taupo.

"I have spent so much time down here," said Lawn from Taupo this week. "It is so easy to just walk out the door and go training. Auckland was ridiculous. We [Lawn, husband and fellow Ironman, Venezuelan Armando Galarraga] had our biggest [training] week at Christmas but it was so difficult with all the traffic. I hope Taupo is behind me."

They should be. After a 4-2-2-1-1 sequence, Lawn is primed for a hat-trick in the Bonita NZ Ironman Championship and the chance to close to within one of four-time winner Erin Baker (who won in 1986-87-90-94).

"It would be nice to be a three-time winner," said Lawn. Beyond that, she says she gives herself another four or fives years in the sport before she and Armando get into the "family business".

Lawn admits she is a "little bit nervous" because she has trained so hard.

"All my training points to a personal best on the bike. Armando has forced me to get out and do 90km time trials by myself. I have a new Cervelo bike which I will ride in a race for the first time and, as I always do, I will wear a new pair of Nike shoes. Again, that can only do so much.

"People power helps in Taupo. There is nowhere to hide. When you are having a bad patch there is always someone about to urge you on."

Lawn, like men's favourite and defending champion Cameron Brown, is honoured to be among those top 10 who were invited to join TriDubai - a team formed to promote sport and health in the United Arab Emirates.

"At every race we do, we decide on a charity and they support it. Cameron and I have thrown our weight behind cystic fibrosis and the people in the UAE will donate money to them."

On one other out-of-competition aspect, Lawn is just as keen.

Promoted from sixth to fifth after drug-testing caught a cheat at last year's World Championship in Hawaii, Lawn is right behind that programme.

"I want them catching more. I'm 2000 per cent behind out-of-competition tests."