Zuriñe Rodríguez returns to professional triathlon

Basque triathlete Zuriñe Rodríguez, Olympian at the London Olympic Games 2012 announced on her personal website that she was returning to high level competition.

After the London Olympics "Zuri" left the high level triathlon, although during these four years he still ran 3 ITU races, his best result being the 7ª of the Panamerican Cup of LA Paz in Argentina, in January of 2014.

Zuriñe made his international debut with the 23 sub2002 World Championship where he achieved a meritorious 10 position. The following year in 2003 in the world sub23 got the bronze medal. During the following years he was competing for the whole world, fighting to qualify for the Olympic Games and he did it in 2012. During these seasons his best international results have been in addition to the bronze medal previously mentioned 2 bronze medals in the World Cups of Tongyeong (South Korea) and Guatapé (Ecuador).

The destiny has wanted that Zuriñe returns to the competition to one of the countries that better results has obtained, in Ecuador, it will be in the next 25 of September in the city of Salinas.

We have spoken with her, who has told us how these four years have been away from high competition:

After the London Olympics 2012, and after 12 years as a professional athlete, I felt that I needed to do other things that filled me not only as a triathlete, but as a person. Therefore, I began to study cooking direction (my other passion) with the initial idea of ​​combining it with training.

I moved to live in Santiago de Compostela with the idea of ​​lowering the piston of international travel and competitions a bit but not stopping competing at all. The truth was impossible. The level of demand for cooking studies was too high to match the life of a professional triathlete. So, there came a time when I had to choose triathlon or kitchen.

When that moment came I did not know the world of cooking from the inside and the desire to improve myself along with my passion for competition made me opt for the kitchen. I already knew that I was able to get on a world cup podium or go to a JJOO as a triathlete but I had no idea what I could get as a cook. And, oddly enough, the level of rivalry that is breathed in the world of haute cuisine is very similar to that experienced in the triathlon.

In short, I wanted to prove to myself that if I believed in myself and in the values ​​I have learned from sport (commitment, motivation, sacrifice, effort) I could achieve anything. And so it was, during 4 years I have learned from many great masters of the kitchen and I have had the opportunity and the privilege of working in prestigious kitchens. Also, because of the fact that I have the competition in my blood, I have won several gastronomic contests as a cook. "

 

Finally we have also asked him what are the main reasons for his return to the high competition

"A little over 1 year ago I was offered to work in a food distributor, the schedule was great and the conditions were very good, the only thing is that I stopped being a cook to be a gourmet product dealer.

At first I took it with a lot of desire. I went with my Vespa "at full throttle" to Madrid from restaurant to restaurant making "product demonstrations" to the cooks and, once again, the competitive spirit in me was awakened. This time for trying to sell the most, having as many customers as possible, serving the first orders, etc. And on top of that, I was pretty good at the truth, so I had a lot of motivation. Suddenly one day the company changes strategy and they prefer that I be in the office contacting customers via telephone instead of with my Vespa ... There I was already in a place that was not mine. I am a super active person to be 6 or 8 hours in an office talking on the phone.

Then, I had the opportunity to take a week off to participate in the Titan Desert 2016 with the Mapoma team in the mixed duo mode. The truth is that I went without having trained everything I had and it took my toll. I suffered more than necessary. But we had a very good head and got the victory. Ostrás! I had forgotten the happiness that comes from giving everything until you empty yourself and find yourself with a podium as a reward ... that magical feeling is so special that you can not explain it with words.

Thanks to that victory I was aroused again by the instinct of competition. I spoke with my family and the FETRI and, seeing that everyone supported me, I had it clear, I wanted to return so I left the job and started training with the Blume team.

I've been training 6 for weeks after I've been almost 4 years "stop" and obviously I'm still far from my best level. Of course, we know that it will be hard to get used to the rhythms of competition again but I have the advantage that I do not have pressure of results from my sponsors, nor do I need to prove anything to anyone and, besides, I come with my head stronger than ever so the objective is to fight to empty myself in each training and in each race, the rest will be a pure consequence. "

From Triathlon News we wish you the best in your return "to the ring".

You can follow Zuriñe through his website or social networks

Web: www.zurinerodriguez.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zurinerodriguezsanchez/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ZurineRodriguez

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zurine_rodriguez/

 

Photo: Getty Images