He’s good-looking, intelligent, witty and incredibly successful. Courtney Atkinson was 17 when he was first referred to as a “legend”. Now, aged 29, he's living the dream. To the uninitiated it might seem like two hours of absolute torture, but Courtney Atkinson says the inherent variety in triathlon ensures he never tires of the sport.
Reap what you sew
Aged just 29, Courtney Atkinson can already look back on an impressive career in a sport in which many hit their stride in their thirties. In 2002, 2003 and 2004 he was Australia’s Triathlete of the Year, naturally winning the Australian Triathlon Championship all three years. He won four consecutive Australian Junior Triathlon Championships from 1996 to 1999. He’s also made a splash in the international scene during 2007 by taking first at the ITU Ishigaki World Cup, 5th in the ITU Mooloolaba World Cup and 1st in the Red Bull Jungfrau Stafette Adventure Race in Zurich. Accomplishments like these don’t just magically appear. Courtney trains with impressive tenacity. Six times a week he swims, bikes and runs, eight hours each day. “It’s my job," he stated simply. “It might sound silly, but as you get older and get the miles in your legs, the sport gets easier and easier. Every year you get a bigger base load of work under you, the better you race.”A cool set of wheels
The genesis of a rather unique triathlon career was comparatively speaking unremarkable. “I just wanted to have a cool bike like my friend’s, who was already competing in triathlon races back then," said Atkinson. The desire for a rad set of wheels was satisfied. Nowadays, what fascinates him most about the triathlon is its long-term prospects. There aren’t any flash-in-the-pans here; it’s a continual overcoming of limits, of one’s own weakness, of the long distances. A question of toughness, of willpower.
While Atkinson admitted there were times he wished he’d become a pro surfer or snowboarder, he actually loves what he does. "It’s a great sport to be a professional at,” he said. “Because of the variety involved with the bike, swimming and running, you never get too bored with it because you are not just doing the one thing day in, day out.”
