To say he engaged the right man to help him prepare is an understatement of epic proportions. Enter Courtney Atkinson, Olympian, six-time Australian triathlon champion and elite-level tri competitor across 15 years. Together, the Polar ambassadors worked to get Davison to the starting line of his first-ever Half-Ironman, with Atkinson – these days a professional inspirer and motivator – playing the role of mentor.

Davison’s 70.3 challenge was a 1.9km swim, 90km bike and 21.1km run. This calibre of triathlon takes athletes to all sorts of strange, deep, personal places in the minds and bodies of competitors. Atkinson, 38, won five of the seven 70.3 events he entered during the last two racing years of his career, meaning Davison was well and truly in safe hands.

HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW EACH OTHER …

COURTNEY: “I’ve known Will for years through my associations with Red Bull. So many of the Supercars drivers and motorcycle riders live on the Gold Coast and all need to be fit. As far as motorsport athletes go, they’re probably the closest people I’ve seen to triathletes and cyclists in a sense of fitness. These guys are already super-fit for what’s physically required of them.

“Realistically – and I’ve seen the data – they’re going around these race tracks with their heartrate at the equivalent or higher than what we race at. Although there’s not that same physical impact, their heart is seeing the same strain which triathletes experience in races.”

WILL: “During our prep I certainly asked Courtney some silly questions, the answers to which might seem so simple to him. Stuff about how to best prepare your transition. Or when do you push on the bike and the run? There are so many little techniques he helped me with. Even getting your wetsuit on and off, having everything laid out perfectly just to set up for that transition. Whether it’s tapering techniques, strength techniques, stretching … It’s not just about running and riding, there’s so much other stuff you have to make sure you keep an eye on in order to get your body performing better.”

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE

COURTNEY: “Coming from my background, obviously being an Olympic triathlete and professional athlete, mine is more of a mentoring role. I do see myself more as a mentor; although, even that term mightn’t be the best way to put it. I’m more like a bank of knowledge, if you like. I like to impart on people who are highly talented in their own different areas, but want to get into endurance sport for either fitness or fun, or have other personal goals. If I can help make that a little bit easier for them through my 20 years of experience at the top level, then that’s my definition of being a ‘coach’, I guess.”

WILL: “I’m so far out of my comfort zone with triathlon. I’ve done between seven-eight Olympic-distance triathlons now, and quite a few sprint ones. I’m familiar with the way it all works, but I’ve taken it up another level now. This was the most serious I’ve treated a triathlon, while still competing at a reasonably low level. But I enjoyed the process of improving my fitness and with that, I’d noticed all these other little details which I needed to make sure were crossed and dotted. You can overlook a lot of them and maybe do an injury or something silly.”