Interview: Josephine Tomic

Just about everything about Josie Tomic (including, usually, Tomic herself) is moving quickly.

After grabbing a swag of titles and a world record on the junior scene, she went to the 2009 senior track world championships and won the omnium, which will make its Olympic debut in 2012.

In an interview last year she said she hoped to sign with a road team in Europe before the London Games. This May more than two years out from the Olympics she signed for the Lotto Belilsol Ladies Team and moved to Spain.

Tomic, now 21, flew to the Commonwealth Games after the European road season. In Delhi she finished 10th in the points race and fifth in the individual pursuit, narrowly missing the medal races.

She begins her Olympic campaign on Australian soil at December's opening world cup meet in Melbourne. She was at home in Perth when Cycling Central caught up with her to talk about the start of the track season, Spanish nightclubs and why Western Australians make good time triallists.

Cycling Central: How much time have you spent on the saddle since Delhi?

Josie Tomic: I've been back on the bike properly for about a week now. I had two weeks totally off to hang out with the family, which was well needed because it was pretty intense leading up to the games.

There have been some long rides, four hours or so, to try to get some base in the legs again. Last week I went and raced the Noosa Criterium. That was pretty rough. I think it was my third ride back in Australia, so it was hard but good. Got me right back into it a bit quicker.

CC: Where do you head in Perth for a four-hour ride?

JT: My favourite route is the Freo loop. Maybe into the hills. Anywhere around the coast and the river here is really nice, and there are good cycle paths everywhere, so you feel pretty safe.

CC: WA coastal roads must be decent practice for riding in cross-winds.

JT: That's why a lot of WA people are very strong in time trials. When you're out on the road it's so windy, you get pretty strong, I reckon.

CC: In Delhi you finished fifth in the individual pursuit and 10th in the points race. What did you make of your performance at the Games?

JT: In the points race I was just helping Megan (Dunn). I was pretty happy with how I felt in that and how I managed to help her when I could.

In the pursuit it was still the second fastest time I've done, so in that respect I should be quite happy, but ... I was going a lot better in training so myself and my coach expected a bit more. But I've still got plenty of pursuits to show that. So it's disappointing, but at the same time I'm still only 21. I've got a lot of time ahead.

CC: You joined Lotto in May this year and moved to Europe for the first time. Where were you living over there?

JT: In Girona, in Spain. I was sharing a house with Tiff Cromwell and Chloe Hosking. There's a lot of the Aussie boys in Garmin and a lot of the pros in general so it's a pretty good cycling community. It made it a lot easier being away from home.

CC: What are the roads like around Girona?

JT: Oh, they're awesome. It's unbelievable to train there. You've got the coast around 30km from the city and all the hills 10km out. Every day you can go on a different ride. I actually really miss it.

CC: How have you found your first proper season on the road?

JT: Yeah, really good. I didn't actually race a huge number of races but that was by choice. Track from September to March is really intense, with (training) camps nearly every month and world cups and then all the Oceania nationals, grand prix and then the big one the worlds.

So by the time March comes round you're pretty mentally and physically stuffed. It took me a while to get going again on the road and get refocused. Some people can do both really easily, but for me I prefer to do less racing but still do a few races so you're keeping fit for the track.

CC: Which races did you ride?

JT: I did a few big tours. The world cup in Spain in Valladolid then a five-day tour straight after that. There was a world cup in Holland. I did a fair bit of racing in Holland and Belgium.

It was good. Really hard as well, for my first year. I was shocked at how strong all the girls rode. I think if I was to do just the road I could really give it a go but I'm not sure that's where I want to go yet.

CC: You didn't end up riding the Giro.

JT: No. The team and I decided not to do it. It was my first year and supposed to be the hardest Giro yet in terms of mountain passes and everything so we decided it was better not to ... rather than do something like that and hate it and fizzle out a little bit.

A lot of the younger girls I know who have done it, they have kind of gone backwards after they'd done it. I didn't want to be in that boat.

CC: How tight is the Australian community over there? Do you see much of the riders on the other teams?

JT: We're all pretty close. There's a lot less girls than guys but even with the men, you catch up for coffee whenever you have time. When the boys have recovery rides some of the girls might go along.

It's nice to see Cameron or Travis (Meyer) who I've grown up riding with ... If I'm missing home a bit, it kind of makes me feel like I'm in Perth.

The town it's big but it's small at the same time. When you go down the street you always bump into someone. That's kind of bad in a way, if you don't feel like seeing someone ...

CC: What's the nightlife like in Girona?

JT: They don't have huge clubs but a lot of small little pubs. We made friends with a lot of the locals there so it's really nice to have people you can hang out with away from cycling. There was a great little place called Lola Bar, just down the road. The guy who managed it was a pretty good friend of all of us ... he always followed everyone's cycling progress.

CC: They cancelled a few key events this year including the women's Tour de France. What sense do you get of the health of women's road cycling in Europe?

JT: Some of the things I saw ... it's a real pity to see women who are sacrificing so much get that sort of prize money. You give up your life and go and live in Europe, you need to make money. It's actually quite disgraceful, some of the prize money. You compare it to the men and all you can do really is shake your head because you're doing the same thing and training just as hard, but you're making nothing.

It's a real shame. It's one aspect of this sport that really, really sucks. But I guess you do it for love.

CC: As a first-year rider how much do you earn from Lotto?

JT: With Lotto I have a special deal. I'm a track rider there so I'm on bonuses. I'm very lucky that Rochelle Gilmore, who has a lot of say in Lotto, she looks after me really well all through the Australian summer as well, with racing with Honda. All my pay and bonuses ... and she's very generous.

I'm managing to live pretty well. I'm pretty comfortable. And my success on the track has helped a bit. I'm quite lucky, but some of the road riders over there, I don't know how they do it, how they manage.

CC: Emma Pooley is one who supports the idea of running women's races alongside the major men's races. Do you think that has merit?

JT: Definitely. I think that would make a huge difference. The biggest thing would be TV coverage because then you'd get sponsors. At the moment our races are at such different times and different places and we have no coverage, so of course no one really wants to sponsor it.

If we just had that there would be a lot more interest ... and the thing is, women's cycling I was surprised at how interesting women's road cycling is. It's shorter than the men's so there's none of that letting a pack go for 100km then working as a team to chase it down. We don't do that because the races are so short and we don't have big enough teams. So the racing is full-on the whole time. I think it's actually quite interesting.

CC: What sort of road rider are you? Do you like to get in an early breakaway?

JT: I think that's where my strength will lie. I'm also a pretty strong time triallist and in the future I hope to specialise in that but for the moment I'm really happy trying to help Rochelle in the sprints and learning my way from her.

CC: You lead out for Rochelle?

JT: That's where I'll be going in the future, for sure

CC: How have you gone in the mountains this year?

JT: Not very well. It's not my forte and I really don't enjoy it in the mountains. I try to stay clear of them.

CC: It's track season again. Do you find that your road work has any benefit for your track racing?

JT: The road had definitely made me a lot stronger and I felt the benefits of it at the Commonwealth Games camp I felt a lot stronger than I've ever felt. It's good to know that, so next year, I know what I'm doing is the right thing by going over (to Europe) again.

Unfortunately I didn't get to really show that at the Commonwealth Games. I got quite sick leading into them.

CC: What about the other way around does track work pay off on the road?

JT: The track makes you develop skills that are quite valuable in the bunch. Also you get quite a bit of speed from the track. I suppose they benefit each other in different ways ... but at the moment I'd definitely be using the road to benefit the track.

CC: You mentioned you got sick heading into Delhi. A stomach thing?

JT: No, I just started getting a really sore throat (before flying out). And then I landed and woke up the next day really quite sick and was on antibiotics. There's something not quite right with my immune system at the moment. I seem to get colds really easily and very often. I'm trying to sort it out. When that's sorted we'll be doing a lot better.

CC: London 2012 is that the big goal?

JT: Yep, that's the really big focus. Everything is kind of on London. That's the one I've been aiming at for the last few years. At the moment everything is going pretty well towards that. I've just got to keep my head down and bum up ... It's going to be quite important because all the qualifiers have just started and every world cup is qualifying points towards (the Olympics).

CC: What events are you targeting?

JT: I'm just focusing on the teams pursuit really. That's my main focus for London. And the omnium I guess also. I'll be riding both in Melbourne.

CC: It's the first time at the Olympics for the omnium. Who do you see as your main competitors there?

JT: Tara Whitten from Canada. She came silver in it the year I won it and then won it this year. She's definitely going to be a force to be reckoned with. Some of the British girls and the American girls, too. There'll be a few.

CC: What about in qualification? Who are your rivals on the Aussie side of things?

JT: Ashlee Ankudinoff she's going to be a pretty hard one to beat in the omnium. Also Kate Bates and Katie Mactier are coming back to try to make the teams pursuit team they're going to have a crack. There's also all the young juniors like Amy Cure and Bella King. There's definitely a fair few girls around.

CC: What does your training schedule look like leading up to Melbourne?

JT: A track camp, then fly to the grand prix, then back to Adelaide for the Oceanias, then off to the world cup. We've got a lot of new girls in the juniors and Katie and Kate coming along to the camp so there'll be a lot of teams pursuit drills. It's full-on.

The 2010 Track World Cup kicks off in Melbourne on Dec 2-4. Tickets available through Ticketek on 132 849 or visit www.trackworldcup.com.au for session and ticketing information.

SBS will broadcast the third day of competition on delay (SBS TWO Saturday Dec 4-5, 9:30pm-12:30am) and run a complete highlights package the following day on Cycling Central (SBS ONE Sunday Dec 5, 5pm). Check your guides for local times.