Laura Philipp’s entry into triathlon was not necessarily foreseeable in her youth. Her passion was climbing, where she managed to conquer passages with a difficulty level of 9+ (!). During her high school years, however, she became increasingly annoyed by the long waiting and travel times with public transport on the way to school. She decided to cycle to school from then on. In fact, she was soon not only faster than her classmates who used public transport, but she also reported that she could concentrate better in class.

Cycling 60 kilometers a day became part of her daily routine for years. Her entry into running was similarly coincidental. Because the roughly five-kilometer walks with the family dog became too boring for her, she began to jog these daily routines. She quickly developed a liking for longer runs. She then taught herself to swim using YouTube videos, and all it took was participation in the local “Heidelberg Man,” a triathlon over the Olympic distance, to realize that she had a talent for the sport. The rest is history: a continuous rise in the triathlon world, peppered with many victories.

Laura Philipp lives by the 80/20 rule. Of course, she eats 80 percent healthy. With all the hard training work, there must also be things to satisfy the soul. This is why a piece of cake is a fixed part of her training routine. Overall, balance is very important to her. Only in this way, can top performances be achieved, only in this way can she reach her limit and sometimes even go beyond it. Regarding balance and physical health, she also points out that she and Philipp Seipp closely observe and incorporate the female cycle into training planning when it comes to training volumes and intensities. In the first half of the cycle, she says, she often thinks she has really good legs in training and can set best times, while in the second half she has to struggle more with herself. This training work, which takes the female cycle into account, seems to unlock the potential for enormous successes. After her triumph in Nice, she was quoted by the press as saying, “I am in the first half of my cycle. I always hoped that the World Championship would fall into this phase.”