Matt Hauser talks 2025 goals, food comas, and a typical day’s training

He’s been racing pro for over a decade, but Aussie Matt Hauser’s star is now firmly in the ascendant. Here he tells 220 about the changes he’s making for 2025, how he’s using past Aussie Olympic setbacks for LA 2028 motivation, and why he’s the most chilled man in tri…

A strong start, solid Olympics and then tapered off towards the end.” That’s Aussie pro Matt Hauser’s succinct summary of his 2024 season, one in which he won his second WTCS event (in Hamburg to add to his Montreal 2023 victory), and placed second in Yokohama.

A “good day” at the Paris Games resulted in a solid seventh place, but admitting that he perhaps “bit off a little bit more than I could chew” towards the end of the year, the popular 26-year-old Gold Coast resident overcooked it on a corner shortly after leaving T1 at the Grand Final in Torremolinos. Hoping to take back a series medal, he instead had 13 stitches in his chin.

But after a reset, which included a week in Majorca with partner Georgia Humphreys, Alex Yee, Liv Mathias, Sophie Coldwell and her husband Todd Evans, he was soon back in training – the early call-up for the first WTCS race of the season in Abu Dhabi gave him just six weeks to get race fit.

But it was enough – a silver behind Paris silver medallist Hayden Wilde giving Hauser the solid start he needs for what he’s calling an “explorative” year on the short-course circuit…

220: So, how pleased are you that Yee and Wilde will be focusing on T100 and marathon running, respectively, in 2025?

Matt Hauser: Ha! I’m 50-50. I think anyone would be silly to admit that it wouldn’t be a relief that they’re not racing. But then there’s that competitor in me who wants to prove that I can be up with them, which I know I can on my day.

More than anything else, it gives us a chance to catch up. And they’ll definitely need to keep their finger on the pulse ‘cause there’s going to be a lot of young guys coming through to take that next step up. And I’m certainly one of them.

220: So who’s on your radar this year?

MH: Vasco [Vilaça], number one. His overall consistency is really impressive. He hasn’t really got a weakness. Then there are the Brazilians – Manoel Messias and Miguel Hidalgo. What amazes me most is their country’s support – Brazilians are just so patriotic and passionate. I think that really does push them to perform at their best.

And obviously the French are going to be strong. I don’t know whether Dorian [Coninx] is going to come back into the series or not and Leo’s [Bergere] doing T100, so it’ll be interesting to see how this series shapes up from there. It’s a really explorative year. Even [US pro] Morgan Pearson is going to try and do T100 and World Triathlon while trying to do half marathons and marathons and whatnot.

And then there’s the young Spaniard, David Cantero Del Campo. I think him having the fastest run in Abu Dhabi [14:05 compared to Hauser and Wilde’s 14:13] was really impressive. As soon as he adjusts to the intensity increase at that WTCS level, he’ll be a real show.

220: What, if any, changes will you be making to your overall training set-up this year?

MH: It’ll definitely be a bit more quality over quantity. Last year it was good that I just got out and raced and took every opportunity that I could get. But this year I’m only going to be overseas for about 10 weeks compared to five months in 2024. I’ve opted out of racing the full Supertri series to focus on the world championships.

And it being a home grand final, in Wollongong, I really want to try and get up on that top step. I believe that I’m capable of that and that the home crowd could give me that edge.

And I’ll be exploring a little bit around altitude, so we’ll [his coach of 10 years Dan Atkins plus three other Aussie male athletes] likely go up to the Pyrenees in the middle of the year. Just ‘cause it’s the first year of the four-year cycle into LA we want to do our own kind of exploration.

220: And you’re racing your first 70.3 in a few weeks’ time, in Geelong

MH: Yeah, it’ll be a good test on the TT bike. I just wanted to get that race experience. I’ve only done one non-drafting race, which was Noosa in 2023. And we’re not racing again [on the WTCS] until mid-May, so it’s a nice time to try something new, and keep engaged with the training, not just slog it out.

The thing I’ve been lacking over the past few years is that Olympic-distance, 10K endurance. That’s where I’ve seen my racing fall off, compared to the likes of Alex and Hayden. So I really do believe the 70.3 – the sheer work and base volume that you need, especially on the bike and then running off – will certainly help me at Yokohama as the first Olympic-distance race of the year.

I just want to get through without cramping really! But I’m also being realistic, it’s my first shot at the distance, just dipping my toes in, out of curiosity [Matt would sadly DNF in Geelong].

220: Why do you think things haven’t quite come together for the Australian men’s Olympic team? And how much of a carrot now is that for you?

MH: The reality is you’ve got to execute on the day. Sometimes luck plays into that, timing has a lot to do with it.

Now we’re seeing more of a globalisation of the sport. Back then there was probably only five or six strong countries in the sport that were treating it like a real thing. Once Europe got a hold of it that kind of grew and grew, and even just to see their appreciation of endurance sports is quite spectacular. Something that I wish Australia had.

Triathlon hasn’t had the respect it deserves in the country, but we’re now seeing a global kind of moment for running and I think that’s now transitioning into triathlon. So I’m hoping with more participation in the sport, there’s going to be more eyes on the sport, there’s going to be more respect for triathlon in Australia. I think that’ll only continue to grow and allow talent to move into successful pathways for triathlon in Australia.

But yeah, the history is really motivating. That’s something that I was very vocal about going to Paris. It’s a stat that I didn’t wanna shy away from – the men haven’t performed on the biggest stage for Australia. I want to do my best to lead that next generation and to back up all the great women’s results we’ve had in the past.

220: How pissed are you that the next Games are LA not Brisbane?

MH: Ha! Yeah, I mean, it would’ve been nice to flip it, but it’s down to me and how well I can kind of keep my body together. It’s [Brisbane 2032] a realistic goal for me, that would be something that would motivate me to push on an extra four years. And I’ll only be 34.

[Tokyo champion] Flora [Duffy] is 37 and almost broke the field apart in Paris last year. So it can be done, and hopefully, I can maintain a high level in the sport up until then. But, yeah, for now, my eyes are obviously firmly set on LA. I’ll be 30, at the peak years of my career, and that’s what these next four years are about – this is my opportunity to try and get it done.

220: A lot of your peers are starting to dabble in the T100 series. Is that the obvious next step for you too, do you think?

MH: Yeah, for sure. That’s probably what this Geelong exploration race is about. If the opportunity does come up and if my schedule does allow it, is it something I’m capable of and excites me enough? I definitely see me playing around a little bit more with those distances between LA and Brisbane.

I’ve heard whispers that there might be an Aussie T100 in the next few years, so I might just have to throw my hat in the ring for that.

220: If you could steal any other triathlete’s skills, whose and what would you choose, and why?

MH: That’s a really good question, actually. For the bike, Léo Bergere. I’ve seen him do no-handed and one-handed wheelies, which I think is incredible. But his overall bike strength is something to behold, and I don’t think that’s even been fully showcased just yet.

And I’d say Morgan Pearson on the run, just to have that half marathon – like, he’s gone 1:01, low, almost sub. I don’t think anyone in the sport would be able to do that. Maybe Alex on his day. That’s a pretty crazy achievement to be able to beat accredited runners over that distance when you’re not specializing in it.

220: I’m basing this observation purely on social media and past interviews, but very little seems to phase you. Is that a fair assessment, would you say, of your personality?

MH: Yeah, I think so. Anything out of my control, I really don’t try and let it bother me. I think the more days you’re angry or sad on this earth, the harder things are going to be. Why sweat the little stuff?

Just try and move on and find the positives.

My mum is just super positive and never has a bad thing or expression on her face, so that’s nice.

A Day in the Life of Matt Hauser

What does a pro’s average 24 hours look like? Well, for Matt Hauser, it involves food comas, sunset walks, and an episode or two of Severance…

5:00am – Wake up

5:05am – Turn the coffee machine on, make a big bowl of oats with honey, raspberries, and banana. Prep bottles with Maurten for the ride, pack Maurten bars and gels.

5:20am – Make a double-shot flat white and eat the porridge, scroll phone for a bit.

5:55am – Meet the lads for the ride.

6:00am – Rollout for a 4-hour ride, with a 30-minute effort at race pace.

10:30am – Meet back at the cars for the run-off – 3x3km threshold with 1-minute float recovery.

11:30am – Head to a café, big brekky burrito with either another coffee or a strawberry milkshake.

12:30pm – Food coma on the couch, watch an NBA game, maybe a little nap.

3:30pm – Roll down to the pool at Palm Beach on my e-bike for an easy 2.5-3km recovery swim.

4:30pm – Afternoon snack of flavoured milk and a packet of chips/cookies.

5:00pm – Catch the last light at the beach and take the dog for a walk.

6:30pm – Cook dinner with my partner – salmon rice bowl/sausage pasta are some favs!

7:30pm – Jump on my phone/watch a TV series (Severance at the moment).

9:30pm – Bedtime.