British Olympic gold medallist Alex Yee is relishing the changes to his training methods ahead of his debut in the London Marathon on Sunday 27 April.
After winning the individual triathlon men’s race at Paris 2024 last summer, the 27-year-old is using the early part of the 2025 season to focus specifically on the run discipline, with the ultimate ambition of transferring those skills back to triathlon through the next Olympic cycle which culminates in the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
To document his experience, Alex is releasing a four-part ‘Alex Yee: The Detour’ series on his YouTube channel [you can watch part one below] ahead of the London Marathon to discuss his ambitions for the race, his adjustment to a run specific training regime and how what he is doing translates to returning to triathlon later this year.
Post-Olympic soul searching
Yee detailed how he had a long-term goal of racing the London Marathon, but with the packed triathlon schedule – specifically in the run up to an Olympics Games – the timing had never been right to commit to the 26.2-mile challenge.
“The London marathon is something I’ve always asked the question about whether it was the right thing to do, whether I could do it, whether it fitted – and of course it has never fitted until we hit this year.
“After spending five years working on swim and bike it was an opportunity to work on run and my first question was can I do some run races around that, and more importantly can I do the London Marathon and I think it has come at a great time after an Olympic Games.
“I think there is definitely a bit of soul searching you do for your purpose and what you want to do to keep improving. For me to have that goal of the London Marathon is working really well that I can come off my winter break and really sink my teeth into something I’ve loved doing and enjoy doing.”
Risk versus reward for Yee
There is of course some trepidation for Yee delving into distance-running. He will no longer be the best in the world at what he is doing, and may have to adjust his expectations to his new reality.
However, Alex is full of excitement at ‘entering the unknown’ and insisted that trying something new would help him grow as a triathlete.
“I think there is definitely risks involved, I think there is also so many unknowns involved as well which is quite exciting in a way. When I’m in this uncomfortable unknown zone this is where I’m going to find growth, where I’m going to do my learning.
“I’ve never done the run volume I am doing at the moment, never done it at the speeds I’m doing. I’ve never done the length of workouts, I’ve never run a race over 10K, so it’s all pretty exciting and new, but I’m embracing that.”
![Alex Yee run Paris Test Event 2023 [Photo credit: World Triathlon / Wagner Araujo]](https://www.tri247.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/Alex-Yee-run-Paris-Test-Event-2023.jpg)
The British Olympic hero gave an indication of how his training goals had changed from one sport to the other and how he is now focused on tangible metrics rather than personal feelings.
“Training is probably as hard as it ever has been, because it’s such a different stimulus.
“Each time I go for a run – before it was like enjoyable, I mean both are enjoyable, but I could run and switch off mind and it was as simple as that – now it’s like ‘right, I need to run six-minute miles for like this bit’ so I need to like switch on a little bit, work to a heart rate and that kind of stuff, where triathlon training is off feel and is very aerobic – those are the big changes.
“I’m loving not knowing what’s going to happen, that’s kind of what is getting me out of the bed at the moment and keeping me motivated.”
Improving as a triathlete
Coach Adam Elliott was approached by Yee prior to his Paris Games success to discuss whether competing at the London Marathon in 2025 would be of benefit to him and develop his triathlon skillset, and he agreed.
“Alex said he wanted to run the London Marathon and asked me what I thought of the idea and I said I think it’s a really good idea,” explained Elliott. “He said ‘do you think the time from the Olympics through to London is enough,’ and in all honesty it is probably on the edge of being enough.
“But it’s clearly something he’s thought about for quite a long time and ultimately he saw it from the outset as something to enhance his triathlon, would doing this make me a better triathlete, can we tap into some areas we haven’t already tapped into before, can it open some doors.
“Can we learn things from it and maybe take it into a triathlon programme or at the very least it’s just a mental challenge and physical challenge of a pretty high magnitude that he can sink his teeth into for six to nine months post-Olympics. The plan for him was always to do that regardless of how Paris went.”
