Triathlon ‘Tiger Coach’ Pledges to Bring Students into the Hong Kong Team
20 May 2016
【HK01】It starts with a 1.5 km swim, followed by 40 km of cycling and 10 km of running. This is the composition of a triathlon race – a race that tests every sportsman’s stamina and will.

Clearly, it is hard work to be a triathlete. But in fact, it is even more difficult to be a triathlon coach, who must teach the triathletes persistence and perseverance in the sport. Erik Chan, a triathlon coach, has pledged to bring his students into the Hong Kong Team. After many years as a trainer, he remains eager to inspire his students and pass on his experience, and he never grows tired of his work.


Erik often encourages his students during the training programme, hoping to heighten their interest in the sport and to pave their way to become members of the Hong Kong Team.


One coach leads the team, while the other covers the back. This guarantees the safety of the students and helps in the instruction. 

During a race, triathletes might find themselves in the middle of a group of competing runners or cyclists, and collisions are common. To prepare his students for this situation, Erik plays the role of a competing racer and races shoulder-to-shoulder with the students. By pressing against the students, he encourages them to push back. He praises those who are brave enough to push back and hold their position, while explaining to those students who give way the importance of holding their position and the risks of losing their balance by not doing so.
“As a sportsman and a coach, I need to keep myself in good shape. I wake up every morning at half past six, and proceed to do my own training for 2 hours starting from half past seven. Most of my lessons start after half past four in the afternoon, and the rest of my time is spent on administrative work at home, which includes handling the students’ information and arranging the training details,” he said. Right after the students’ cycling session is finished, Erik takes a quick shower and heads to the swimming pool for another swimming lesson.

It is raining lightly, but Erik has no intention of stopping the training. He prepares his students for more collision practice, while his coaching partner Kam sets up obstacles in the next section of the road to prepare for the next stage of the training session. Cornering, cycling with one hand, and evading obstacles are all necessary skills for a real triathlon race. If any student is unable to perform the training manoeuvre, Erik does not express disappointment, but instead actively motivates the student by prompting him to do better, “Looks like you didn’t make it the last time. Charles, please show him how to do it.”


Collision practice is not meant to encourage the students to attack competing racers, but is a way of self-protection to avoid injuries and a negative impact on the athlete’s performance.


Erik often encourages his students during the training programme, hoping to heighten their interest in the sport and to pave their way to become members of the Hong Kong Team.

“As a sportsman and a coach, I need to keep myself in good shape. I wake up every morning at half past six, and proceed to do my own training for 2 hours starting from half past seven. Most of my lessons start after half past four in the afternoon, and the rest of my time is spent on administrative work at home, which includes handling the students’ information and arranging the training details,” he said. Right after the students’ cycling session is finished, Erik takes a quick shower and heads to the swimming pool for another swimming lesson.


As an enthusiast of the triathlon, Erik puts all of his time and energy into his work, and has devoted his life to training the students.


Erik has kept records of the training sessions with his students for 5 years. He already has several of these record books.

The triathlon is a sport that requires the maximum degree of stamina and will. “I always regret putting myself through such hardships after the race,” Erik jokingly says, “but my mind never stops thinking. I keep on thinking about the tactics, such as when I should accelerate and when I need to preserve strength. There are many things that must be considered during the race.”

As dusk approaches, Erik prepares the equipment and walks to the pool. Besides his fellow coach Kam and the junior students from the previous session, there are also more than a dozen senior students waiting at the poolside. Erik’s teaching style is consistent, and there are no break periods in his training sessions. The students first have to run 1-2 km as a warm-up. As the team begins the training, a female student turns up late, and Erik looks displeased.

Continuous training with no slacking off

Even though it is a swimming session, Erik keeps to his high principles and asks every student to do dozens of push-ups and sit-ups before entering the pool. At one time, some parents expressed concern about him being too harsh on the students. But Erik has remained undeterred, and insists that his students must finish the required exercises and not take the easy way out. By the time all of the students have finished the exercises, it is already half past six in the evening.


During the physical training, Erik and his coaching partner Kam often demonstrate the movements.

Challenge yourself even outside of the race

Once everybody is ready to enter the pool, Erik lists the swimming exercises for the students to complete in the first 45 minutes: 400 m freestyle, 300 m backstroke with a butterfly kick, 50 m left-hand freestyle, 50 m right-hand freestyle and 400 m freestyle with paddles. These exercises will train the students’ muscular strength and stamina. Throughout the swimming session, Erik never takes his eyes off the pool, and uses his walkie-talkie to instruct his students to correct their swimming posture. By standing over the pool, Erik believes that he can see the movements of every student in the pool, which greatly helps his coaching capabilities.


Before the start of every swimming session, Erik explains to his students the details of the training activities.


Despite his strict approach, the young students develop perseverance and determination through Erik’s training.

Erik will soon be heading to a competition in Thailand, and of course he would like to share with his students the feeling of wanting to win, and thus to encourage them to train hard with the goal of joining the Hong Kong Team. There are all kinds of youngsters among Erik’s students, including some foreigners, and Erik thinks that there can be more than one reason for participating in the training programme, “To be honest, given my experience over the last 5 years, some people will quit, and not everybody can make it to the Hong Kong team. But I would be filled with joy if even one student makes it to the team. Who knows what will happen in the future? I am only certain that if I don’t train each student with all of my effort, they will not be able to make it. Even when some of the students do not have an athletic physique, I always encourage them to continue with their training. One of my students is a heavy girl, and a long time ago she told me that she wanted to give up, but I said that the value of performing sport is not necessarily winning a competition. It can also be a way to challenge yourself, and that girl is still my student today. Michael Phelps from the US national swim team is an extraordinary swimmer, but it took his coach 10 years to inspire and train him to reach that level. My student’s goals and my own aspirations might not be the same, but who knows; perhaps that girl will be the one to become a member of the Hong Kong Team.”


The time allotted for the swimming training session is limited, and Erik does not waste a single second in his coaching. His students listen to him attentively.


Not every student aspires to join the Hong Kong Team, but Erik believes that a future Hong Kong Team member will be found among his students.