Interview with Charlotte Morel: “I have a card to play for Hawaii”

She is one of the biggest drivers of French Long Distance triathlon. Soon to be 30 on January 16, Charlotte Morel is embarking on her 16th season at the elite level, which could take her to the Ironman World Championship in Hawaii in October, one of her lifelong dreams as a triathlete. Maturity and experience are on her side, and she is free from a nasty back injury that prevented her from performing at her best throughout the 2018 season. This is an opportunity to take stock, look ahead, and learn more about the athlete from Var.

Interview by Pierre-Maxime BRANCHE. Photos: Stef Candé, Lapierre.

3Bikes.fr: In early October, you revealed a right-sided discopathy and the beginning of a herniated disc. Were you afraid for your future?
Charlotte Morel: An injury is always difficult for an athlete to experience. My biggest goal at that time was to find and treat the cause so that it wouldn’t come back, to no longer have pain, and to be able to resume training. I’ve gone through many periods of injury-related stoppages during these past fifteen years at the elite level, but I know that if the determination is there, you can always come back with time and patience.

3B: To what extent did this injury affect your 2018 season?
C.M: It started in April, but it got much worse towards the end of the season. Ultimately, I was able to complete all the major key objectives of my season. But I think I was penalized because I was only at 60% of my capacity in my right leg due to the projected sciatic pain.

3B: Did you cry at certain moments?
C.M: Yes… I shed tears of sadness and disappointment.

3B: During eight weeks of complete rest, did time drag on and did you get bored?
C.M: Ten weeks of complete rest, to be exact… Yes, time dragged on. It feels very strange to go from 25/30 hours of weekly training to zero. I spent a lot of time stretching and resting. But I always have things on my mind, so I rarely get bored.

3B: What are you afraid of in life?
C.M: Running out of time to do everything I want to achieve and to see the people I love.

3B: Is it difficult to resume training with 4×10′ jogging with 1′ walking recovery when you are a recognized champion?
C.M: Yes and no. As I said, I’ve already gone through several long injury breaks in running. So I know what it’s like. And besides, I was so happy to be able to run again that no matter the time, pace, or distance, it was already huge! ?

3B: Are you… bigorexic?
C.M: I think I’m addicted to sport and that it’s part of my balance and well-being. When I’m completely inactive, I feel bad. Fresh air, effort, and nature make me feel alive. You could call it a kind of bigorexia.

3B: What is your definition of a triathlete?
C.M: A person who practices swimming, cycling, and running in succession, a person who travels the world, who loves challenges, effort, and pushing their limits.

3B: Your running is often pointed out as a weakness compared to your swimming and cycling. Do you feel capable of eliminating it or do you accept it as it is?
C.M: My running is currently my weak point in Ironman. In shorter events, like M and 70.3, I don’t consider it my weak point because I’ve already achieved good 10K and half-marathon times. But indeed, in Ironman, I still struggle to put together a run that matches my physiological capabilities. The numerous injury breaks in running may also be responsible for this difficulty.

3B: What is your favorite training session in each discipline?
C.M: Group sessions for swimming. Long rides through the Alpine passes for cycling. For running, long runs too, for example at SV1 (aerobic threshold, editor’s note).

3B: Is a season without Embrunman conceivable?
C.M: It’s the race I enjoy the most, both in preparation and the event itself. However, to get closer to my goal, which is to go to Hawaii, I’m considering not doing Embrunman this year.

3B: By the way, which bibs will you be wearing in 2019?
C.M: I should start with the Cannes International Triathlon in mid-April or the Ironman 70.3 Marbella in Spain at the end of April. Then, I’m considering the Ironman 70.3 Barcelona or the Ironman Lanzarote in the second half of May. After that, there will be the Ironman Nice at the end of June. Then, it will depend on the results, but I hope for the 70.3 World Championship in Nice in early September and why not the Ironman World Championship in October…

“To go to Hawaii, I’m considering
not doing Embrunman this year…”

3B: Does Short Distance no longer appeal to you at all?
C.M: I still enjoy this distance but without drafting! It seems very short and fast when you come back from Ironman! I keep races I like in my schedule, such as the Marseille M, the Cassis M, and the French Military Championships.

3B: Do you sometimes stop and ask yourself why you do triathlon?
C.M: Yes! I’ve been doing triathlon for 18 years, and for 15 of those years, I’ve been doing it at a high level and it’s all I do. Daily, I used to share my sessions with my fiancé Fred (Frédéric Belaubre, editor’s note), but since he stopped in 2015, my training has a different flavor. From the beginning, I’ve done triathlon out of love for the sport, nature, and the pleasure of working on and combining these three disciplines. Competition is important to me, but it’s inseparable from this notion of pleasure that I need to perform.

3B: In your race preparation, do you have a mental and psychological approach to the event?
C.M: I do a bit of mental visualization in the days leading up to a race. Both visualizing the course and the actions to take, but also memorizing positive images that can help me in difficult moments. Unfortunately, I don’t take the time to do it daily. My father gave me a book for Christmas, “Méditer jour après jour” (Meditate Day by Day). Could it be a message for me?! (Laughs) In any case, I’m going to try to get into it.

3B: What does Yoga bring you?
C.M: A mix of core strengthening, proprioception, muscle strengthening, and stretching. It’s really comprehensive and allows me to work on my deep posture.

3B: Do you handle pressure well (and I’m not talking about beer!)?
C.M: External pressure is always difficult to handle. The more significant results you have, the more you are expected to perform by the people who follow you and by your partners… It’s not always easy to handle this pressure in the sense that I don’t want to disappoint them. But generally, I manage to channel this stress well on race day and transform it into positive energy.

3B: Do you dread the day you will no longer be introduced as a high-level athlete?
C.M: I think that ending a high-level career is always a difficult moment to go through. You need to have a strong project after triathlon that still allows you to wake up every day with passion and determination. For my part, I will never forget everything that triathlon has brought me over all these years, but I am certain that the day I turn the page on high-level sport, other wonderful and exciting things will be waiting for me. Life is so rich!

3B: Is your future already set in coaching through the MYTRIBE structure? Or do you envision yourself in another sector?
C.M: I thrive alongside Fred in developing this shared project that passionately drives us. So yes, it will certainly go in that direction.

3B: In 2018, you rode Lapierre’s Aerostorm and Aircode. Did you benefit from personal improvements in relation to your discipline?
C.M: Indeed, I was lucky enough to join Lapierre with their quality bikes. I had a little apprehension about changing equipment, and in the end, I immediately loved both models.

“I had a little apprehension about changing equipment,
and in the end, I immediately loved my Lapierre bikes.”

3B: Have you met the Groupama – FDJ riders and do you watch the Tour de France?
C.M: I’ve only met Thibault Pinot. Yes, I love watching the Tour!

3B: Who is your best friend in triathlon?
C.M: It’s hard to name just one person! Thanks to triathlon, I’ve had the chance to meet a large number of triathletes, whether in daily training, during camps, at club gatherings, and of course at races where I’ve formed friendships with international athletes. Okay, I can mention… Delphine Pelletier, who was part of my development in triathlon since 2004 and remains a close friend, still by my side today. But she’s not the only one!!!

3B: Your friends are coming for dinner, what’s on the menu?
C.M: Chicken curry colombo with peppers, coconut milk, and almonds. For dessert, a chocolate lava cake. Good and light.

3B: In the kitchen, are you more Philippe Etchebest or Cyril Lignac?
C.M: I love to cook and I mainly create my own recipes.

3B: Besides La Compagnie Créole, what’s on your training playlist?
C.M: I listen to a bit of all music styles during my training sessions. But I like electro for rhythmic sessions.

3B: What annoys Charlotte Morel?
C.M: Oh dear… many things! I’m rather impatient by nature, I tend to get annoyed quickly, but I try to control myself.

3B: In what area could you surprise us, what are your hidden talents?
C.M: Cooking or my ability to do many different things at once.

3B: You’re invited to a costume party, what costume do you choose and why?
C.M: It really depends on the theme…

3B: Let’s get back to triathlon with the inevitable question: will you ever see Hawaii? Is it still a goal, a dream?
C.M: Hawaii! Only time will tell. But I think this year, with the change in the qualification system and the addition of 15 bibs for women, I have a card to play. In any case, this year it will be the goal.

3B: Let’s imagine you cross the finish line in Kona, will the circle be complete to the point of heading towards other challenges in other disciplines?
C.M: It’s hard to say if I’d want to stop after Kona or come back to do better until I’ve been there! The most important thing for me is always to enjoy what I do.

3B: Would a Diagonale des Fous thrill you?
C.M: Absolutely! Trail running is a discipline that attracts me for the future.

3B: You have formalized your future union with your partner Fred Belaubre. Marriage means baby (or not!)… have you discussed this with Jeanne Collonge?
C.M: Indeed, I am lucky enough to marry Fred this year. We chatted a bit with Jeanne in Nice last year! She came back really well after her baby… It makes you want to!

3B: The last question is open: “What else?”
C.M: Enjoy life, live it 100% doing what you love with those you love. Believe in yourself, all goals are achievable. You just have to believe.

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