Born to Perform Read online

  All of these people are with me in my life’s work, in my travels and in my prayers, and serve as a reminder that we all come into this world as participators, not spectators.

  Tomorrow will bring its own challenges and opportunities. The only way I know is to chase excellence and fly higher to see and achieve more. Every day alive is God’s gift. Take it from me – life is precious. Today, everyday, embrace it.

  Epilogue

  The pursuit of excellence never ends. To reach the top in any endeavour, in sport, in business or in life in general, one must always be willing to learn. Lifelong learning and lifelong striving to do things the best you possibly can ensures that you avoid stagnation, and stay competitive and fresh.

  It was Friday, June 18, 2009. I left Limerick at 6.00 a.m. and drove the two hours to Ireland’s longest beach at Inch Strand on the Dingle Peninsula. The beach was completely empty – there wasn’t a soul in sight except for me and my footprints on the sand. I walked in a pensive mood for almost an hour, readying myself for the task ahead. I was getting my mind focused and into the zone for a challenge of a crazy sort, all on my own. Once again, I was exploring my own physical, mental and suffering capabilities towards the reward of conquering and achieving what I mapped out to do in a far tougher challenge two weeks later.

  I geared up and rolled out of sleepy Inch a little after 9.00 a.m., cycling five miles back towards Castlemaine before turning onto a narrow road barely the width of a van. Facing me was a near vertical two-mile climb, which dropped down into the village of Camp and on to Stradbally. After that, the route led to the base of Ireland’s highest pass, the Conor Pass, some one hour and twenty minutes into the cycle. I mentally prepared myself for the penance ahead. From the Stradbally side to the top of the Conor Pass is three miles of climbing, a climb that puts most car engines into overheat. From Dingle back up to the top it is four steep miles, and on wet, misty days you cycle in the surreal mist, high up above civilisation.

  On this day, I cycled the Conor Pass three times from each side, a total of 21 miles of gut-wrenching and muscle-aching pedalling, and without ever dismounting the bike. I arrived back at a busy Inch beach after cycling for six hours and twenty minutes, packed the bike into my car and drove home. When I came in the door, my wife Diane said, “How was your day?” “Good,” I said. “I had a nice cycle and I’m ready for the Marmotte.”

  Always trying to soar high to see farthest, I was going outside my own day-to-day comfortable routine of standing at a physio table, treating flesh and bone. I was going out into the unknown, taking a push bike up into the highest mountains, to try to understand a little more about life and about myself. This is something I can never do when smothered with the hustle and bustle of business, clinic life and taking care of other people’s problems and needs. We all need freedom to find our true self.

  The Marmotte – or Marmotte L’Équipe Du Grand Trophee Randonneur, to give it its full title – is a beast of an event. It is one of the toughest one-day cycling events on the globe. Some 9,000 cyclists from all over the world take part, real cycling purists – and you need to be as it’s a 174-kilometre hell of an event that makes even cycling the Conor Pass six times in one go seem insignificant. Preparation, preparation, preparation has always been my mantra, and the cornerstone of my success in everything I do. The Conor Pass served a purpose. I cycled the Marmotte in the spirit of the Jonathan Livingston Seagulls of this world, pushing my boundaries and enjoying the day’s experience into the bargain.

  The Marmotte presents the most famous of famous Alpine climbs, used over the years in the Tour de France, which open the chest and make the lungs gasp for oxygen. The first climb of the day, the Col du Glandon, is nine miles of climbing, the second, the Col du Télégraphe is eleven miles, and the third, the famous Col du Galibier, is fourteen miles of climbing; together they make up eight hours of cycling. Then you face one of the most infamous climbs in cycling history – the Alpe d’Huez, a nine-mile climb up 21 hairpin bends to the summit and the finish line of the Marmotte. Awaiting me at the top was a gold medal that I won for the 45–50-year-old category.

  To win something is always nice, but the victory I chase at this stage of life is the uniqueness of being healthy and totally alive and appreciating that every day is a gift. I still want to participate in this life and give my best in the pursuit of excellence. In that regard, perhaps I was born to perform, but sport remains my lifelong friend. Sport can save; sport can heal – and that’s the lesson for us all. Let sport shape your life.

  Triathlon – From Sporting Craze to Ireland’s Fastest Growing Sport

  By Ian O’Riordan

  People who take part in triathlons will tell you they are primarily motivated by health and fitness. But that simply isn’t true. For all the cheap thrills at our fingertips these days, most of us lead pretty dull lives, and, bored with our daily routines, set out to find something a little less ordinary.

  The golf course might be alright for some, and good luck to them; for others, motivated by fearlessness and a little craziness, it is swimming, cycling and running – and preferably in quick succession. This is what gets the adrenaline pumping for the proper life junkie, and if it helps keep the arteries free of cholesterol then that’s a mere side-effect.

  When Gerard Hartmann unwittingly and utterly naively walked into this strange and unusual pursuit, in Lake Charles, Louisiana, sometime in the spring of 1981, there was no way he could possibly have imagined it would someday become one of the headline events at the Olympic Games – and a mass participation event, on a massive scale. But then, who could have imagined this?

  The truth is, some people still can’t make sense of the triathlon: the zipping and stripping of wetsuits – Orca, 2XU, Zoot; the clipping into and dismounting of bicycles – Cervelo, Pinarello, Cannondale; the lightweight flats and half-naked running … No wonder Nike keep coming up with such catchy slogans.

  Perhaps the triathlon will only ever make sense to those who have tried it. What is certain is that the triathlon is among the fastest growing sports in the free world, and Ireland is no exception. Gerard Hartmann took his experience from Lake Charles that day and forged not just a new life, but a new lifestyle – and if Ireland now boasts several world-class triathlons, from Kilkee to Tri-Athy to Tri-Athlone, every single one of them owes a little nod to the original of the species, and Hartmann is unquestionably among them.

  Ever since making its Olympic debut in Sydney in 2000, triathlon has continued to grow at all levels – from the very elite right on down to the amateur. The Olympic distance – a 1.5-kilometre swim, 40-kilometre cycle and 10-kilometre run – has also become the standard, although for most aspiring triathletes there is the standard sprint distance: a .75-kilometre swim, 20-kilometre cycle and 5-kilometre run.

  At the elite end, Ireland is now, in the sporting parlance, punching above its weight. In Beijing in 2008, Emma Davis became Ireland’s first Olympic representative, and both Gavin Noble, from Enniskillen, and Aileen Morrison, from Derry, are well within the world ranking range to compete in London in 2012. Morrison came late into the sport, having started out as a swimmer, yet, like many triathletes, soon found herself thoroughly addicted.

  There were 140 triathlons on the Irish calendar in 2011, and Triathlon Ireland now boasts over 5,500 members and active clubs in every county. Recently it secured its first major sponsorship with a three-year deal with Vodafone. It’s estimated that over 16,000 people of all ages, gender and ability participated in a triathlon in 2011. The large growth in female participants, with a 60:40 male-to-female ratio, is perhaps one further reason why all the government health warnings have finally convinced us that, instead of taking up one sport, we should take up three at a time.

  Come June 2012, the top 55 ranked international triathletes, men and women, will be nominated for the London Olympics, based on their 14 best results over the previous 2-year period. Ireland’s Aileen Morrison and Gavin Noble are poised to make their O
lympic debuts.

  For more information and all Irish club listings see: www.triathlonireland.com.

  On my First Communion day, 1969.

  The 1979 All-Ireland Junior Steeplechase event. I am no. 28; my good friend Paul Moloney (of adidas fame) is no. 29. Standing to the extreme left of the photo is my friend Fr Frank Madden, who was tragically killed by lightning.

  Extract from my training notebook from 1979 about the school marathon run I did to raise money for Trocáire. Clockwise from left: the poster I drew up and stuck on the school notice board; with Fr Patrick Donnellan, head master, and Fr Joe Harrington, rector, Salesian College, Pallaskenry, Co. Limerick before my charity run; I ran the 25 miles in under 2 hours and 40 minutes, without once stopping or taking a drink of water; students cheer me on my way.

  Me, Coach “Bullet” Bob Hayes and Fanahan McSweeney at McNeese State University, Louisiana, 1980. Fanahan competed at the 1972 Munich Olympics in the 400 metres for Ireland. After two years at McNeese, I had had enough and transferred to the University of Arkansas.

  May 22, 1981: winning the contraband five-mile road race, which was the first of three events making up the inaugural triathlon staged in the State of Louisiana.

  Start of the inaugural Sligo All-Ireland Triathlon, June 17, 1984. Hardy athletes brave the cold water; the luxury of using wetsuits in triathlon events did not come about until 1987.

  International magazine Triathlete centre spread photograph of me winning the first of seven All-Ireland Triathlon titles, June 17, 1984.

  After my victory at the first All-Ireland Triathlon, June 17, 1984: RTÉ’s Thelma Mansfield, me, RTÉ’s Brendan O’Reilly and my mother, Thecla Hartmann.

  “Double trouble” – with triathlete Diane Sloan from Belfast in Nice, France in 1984. Both Diane and I ended up in casts at the Triathlon World Championships in 1984.

  Winning my second All-Ireland Triathlon in Sligo by a massive fifteen-minute margin, June 23, 1985.

  Finishing my first Hawaii Ironman World Championship in 24th place, October 26, 1985.

  Meeting Dave Scott, five-time Hawaii Ironman Champion from Davis, California, on Big Island, Hawaii in 1985.

  Ironman swim start 1984. 1,800 brave souls charge into the Pacific Ocean to compete in the 2.4-mile swim, the first event of the Hawaii Ironman World Triathlon Championship.

  Outside my family’s fourth generation jewellery business at 2 Patrick Street, Limerick in 1986. At 25, sport was shaping my life and taking me in a new direction.

  Being interviewed by RTÉ’s Ronan Collins after winning the 1986 All-Ireland Triathlon at Rosses Point in Sligo. My mother, Thecla, who is standing between us, looks on.

  Competing at the Triathlon World Championships in Nice, 1986. Above the city of Nice, the cycle route covers 77 miles and ventures into the Maritime Alps, up steep climbs on narrow roads with treacherous descents. The 1984 Triathlon World Championships had not been kind to me, but this time I was well prepared. I finished fourteenth overall.

  The front of Triathlon Ireland magazine in 1986, depicting me running in the Triathlon World Championships in Nice. I ran the twenty-mile run in two hours and eight minutes.

  Competing in the 1987 Japan International Triathlon. This was probably my best international finish. I had the fastest bike ride and the fastest run. I only finished third overall, as my swimming was my weak link.

  Competing in the Hawaii Ironman, Oct 14, 1989. I’m out of the saddle, trying to make up time on the eleven mile climb to the half-way turnaround at Havi. I had one of the top cycling times – 4 hours and 48 minutes.

  Winning the 1991 All-Ireland Triathlon at Rosses Point in Sligo. It would prove to be the last competitive triathlon I would have the physical capability to compete in at an elite level.

  After the accident on August 28, 1991. For weeks, I was low and depressed, after breaking my hip and ending my career as an athlete. But I woke up one morning with a smile on my face and I have never looked back.

  The end result of my accident is that I have enough metal in my right hip to set off alarms at security in airports.

  Receiving the “Triathlete of the Decade” award in 1992 from Pat Curley, the founder and dynamo behind the All-Ireland Triathlon in Sligo.

  In the Olympic Stadium at the Barcelona Olympic Games in 1992. It was my first Olympic Games and I worked with twelve medal winners. Nowhere else is the energy and excitement so electrifying as in a full Olympic Stadium.

  At the 1995 RTÉ Sports Star of the Year Awards with friends Eamonn Coghlan, Seán Kelly and Jimmy McGee.

  With Sonia O’Sullivan at the Treaty Stone in Limerick City, 1995. Sonia is just after winning the World Championship 5,000 metres. I am very proud of my Limerick heritage and take great pride in bringing many of the world’s sports stars to my native city.

  With gold medallists Mark McKoy (Canada) (left), 110-metre hurdles champion, 1992, and Linford Christie (UK), 100-metre champion, 1992.

  Treating William Sigei in Gainesville, Florida, 1995. William was the 10,000 metres world record holder and two-time world cross country champion.

  With Moses Kiptanui (Kenya) in the Olympic Stadium at Atlanta Olympic Games, 1996. At that time, Moses was the multiple world record holder in the 3,000 metres, 3,000-metre steeplechase and 5,000 metres.

  With Kelly Holmes (UK) in my clinic in Limerick, 2000. Kelly overcame multiple injury problems to become a double Olympic champion in the 800 metres and 1,500 metres at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

  Crossing the finish line of the 25th Anniversary Hawaii Ironman in 2003 was a special occasion for me. I had been told I’d never run again by the experts and yet I completed the toughest Ironman on the globe, running a full 26.2-mile marathon in the process.

  With my father Patrick in 2003. Patrick was an active sportsman throughout his life.

  With Paula Radcliffe in 2003, minutes after she set a new marathon world record of 2 hours, 15 minutes and 25 seconds in the London Marathon. I have worked with Paula for fourteen years and shared many highs and some lows with her.

  Treating Cork hurling star Seán Óg Ó hAilpín in my clinic in Limerick, 2005. In the background, framed, is the jersey he wore in the All-Ireland hurling victory against Kilkenny in 2004, which he signed and presented to me with the message “Thanks for the Belief”.

  With Kelly Holmes in Limerick, 2004. Kelly brought her two Olympic gold medals over to Limerick to share them with fans who had supported and encouraged her through injury stages, when it had looked unlikely that she would ever grace the podium.

  With Ger Keane, my colleague at the Hartmann International Sports Injury Clinic and Ronan O’Gara in May 2005. Weeks earlier, Ronan came knocking at my door in dire straits. He had injured his right knee and he presented me with the task of mending him in record time for the Lions Tour weeks later.

  With my wife Diane and my family on our wedding day, October 2, 2006: my sister Thecla, my mother Thecla, me, Diane, my father Patrick, and my sisters Leonie and Helga at Adare Manor Co. Limerick. (Courtesy of www.michaelmartinphotography.ie)

  Oct 2, 2006: close friends at Adare Manor for our wedding day: Frank O’Mara, Marcus O’Sullivan, Kelly Holmes, Eamonn Coghlan, me, Sonia O’Sullivan and Nic Bideau. (Courtesy of www.michaelmartinphotography.ie)

  With Kerry footballers on the Tuesday before the All-Ireland football final in September 2006 against Mayo, which Kerry won. The Kerry greats visited me for a final tune-up on the physio table: Seamus Moynihan, Eoin Brosnan, me and Colm Cooper.

  Cycling in Belgium with Eddy Merckx in 2007. Eddy is a five-time Tour de France winner and arguably the world’s greatest ever cyclist.

  “All together now” – putting a group of international athletes through their warm-up programme, Iten, Kenya, 2009. The Kenyans train in groups with the motto “Train hard, win easy.”

  With my wife Diane, a GP in Limerick.

  With my son Patrick,
who has brought great joy and fun into my life.

  Teaching a group of physiotherapists in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2009. The week-long seminar was exhausting, but the satisfaction of helping others made it all worthwhile.

  In my clinic in Iten, Kenya in 2010, with two of today’s stars: Mo Farah (UK) (left) – world champion 5,000 metres 2011 – and Joseph Ebuya (Kenya), world cross country champion 2010.

  With Kilkenny star hurler Henry Shefflin in 2010. Henry’s drive to win and excel is truly remarkable. In my view, he ranks with the best of the world and Olympic champions I have treated. An inspiration!

  With Moses Kipsiro (Uganda) in my clinic in Iten, Kenya in 2011. Moses won the Commonwealth 5,000- and 10,000-metre Championships in 2010, and weeks later became the first athlete since Ben Jipcho (Kenya) in 1973 to win the 5,000- and 10,000-metre double at the All-African Championships.

  Treating Vivian Cheruiyot (Kenya) in my clinic in Iten, Kenya, in 2011. Vivian is the world 5,000-metre champion (2009 and 2011), world 10,000-metre champion (2011) and world cross country champion (2011).

  With University of Limerick President Professor Don Barry and Ronnie Delany at opening of the “Hartmann Collection” at the university in 2007. (© Press 22: www.press22.ie)