Triathlon: Docherty's World Cup nightmare

Bevan Docherty. Photo / Rotorua Daily Post

Two-time Olympic medallist Bevan Docherty has put his form slump down to his decision to race the Philly Tri in June.

Docherty won the race, which was shortened to a duathlon after a competitor died on the swim leg during a race the day beforehand, but the non-drafting rules on the bike leg sapped strength from his legs that he struggled to regain.

"After the win in Philly I never recovered," Docherty said in his latest newsletter.

The 33-year-old pulled out of his latest World Cup Series event in Kitzbuhel, Austria ending any faint hopes he might have held about winning the championships.

Docherty IS 14th in the seven-race series, having plummeted down the standings after winning the opening race in Sydney.

With no hope of winning the series, he will not attend the season-ending race in Budapest, Hungary, where double points are on offer.

"It's still not over for me this year, just the WCS. I'm going to have a two-week break to recharge the batteries and then get into some training for the last few races of the US season."

The Beijing bronze medallist said that he felt in great form after the Hy-Vee event in Des Moines, the world's richest race, and decided to squeeze in the Philadelphia event before resuming his WCS in Hamburg. He now acknowledges that was a mistake.

"So what happened? How can I go from winning the first race in Sydney to not even being able to finish a race?" Docherty wrote.

"The World Cup Series nowadays is so competitive that in order to win the race you need to push the limits. Unfortunately for me, I pushed too far."

Docherty said that his motivation remained high - he desperately wants to add Olympic gold to his silver (Athens) and bronze (Beijing) collection in London in 2012 - and that he now had a better understanding of when he is pushing too hard.

It has been a disappointing year for the New Zealand men on the WCS circuit. Kris Gemmell is the next best placed, lying 31st in the standings. Clark Ellice is 44th.

It is a different story in the women's series where New zealand has four competitors in the top 30.

Andrea Hewitt leads the way in second, followed by Debbie Tanner (18), Kate McIlroy (25) and Nicky Samuels (29).

UPHILL SERIES STRUGGLE
* Sydney, April: 111st
* Seoul, May: 87th
* Madrid, June: 5DNS
* Hamburg, July: 17DNF
* London, July: 24DNF
* Kitzbuhel, August: 14DNF
* Budapest, September: 8DNS