Getting to know Jean Pierre "Peter" Lautredoux

Some of you may know him well, some may not know him, some may have seen him before, but he is the one and only Jean Pierre "Peter" Lautredoux. Peter, as he is known to most/all local runners or friends alike, has come a long way from France and currently living in Kuala Lumpur together with his Malaysian wife and son. He has ran even with the Great Haile Gebreselassie (read on). Those who only knows that he runs fast, well, he is fast, may not know that he was once a top French runner in his younger days (not that he is that old right now). 

Peter's finishing kick! Photo courtesy from Tey

I thought it will be good to get to know him a little better and maybe learn a few things from him........

1. Can you tell us briefly about yourself?

My name is Jean-Pierre but most of people call me Peter as Pierre means Peter. It is easier to remember. I’m 44 yr old, French. I come from Brittany (North West of France) but I lived 18 yrs in Marseille (South East of France). I’m now based in Malaysia for the past 6 yrs as I’m married to a Malaysian.

I do have a personal best of 13:27 in 5000m, 43:25 in 15km, 61:43 in 21.1km and 2:15:18 in the marathon (all official distances). I finished 20th in the 6th IAAF World Half Marathon Championship in 1997 held in Košice, Slovakia.

2. How and when did you start running? And who got you into running?

I think I started to run before I walk…just kidding! : ) I started to run when I was only 10 yrs old, on a Sunday morning with my Dad, along the river near my house (4k). I come from a family of runners. I did my first race at the same age with the school. I ran with kids who were a year older than me and I won. Two days later, I ran my 1st race for the club, I won again and 3 days later it was the school championship (all the schools in the state), and I won my 3rd race in 6 days! At this time, I was not training, just a jog with my dad once a while. 

3. Who was your mentor then?

I think, I started to train when I was about 12 yr old. My elder brother, Eric, was my coach at that time up until I was 20 yrs old. Our relationship was a perfect match (and it didn’t change since). After that, between 25~29, I got a second coach, Benjamin, who has trained top athletes such as Saïd Aouita and Brahim Boutayeb, both Olympic champions in 5000m (Los Angeles 84) and 10,000m (Seoul 98) respectively. I've learned a lot from him such as physiology aspect, weight training and all the specific sessions for 5000m-10000m. The training sessions were really motivating. When I think about it, if I had the same speed than before, I would go on the track right now! For the past 15 yrs, I coach myself. I know myself perfectly well and I know what I need to do.

4. How intensive was your training back when you were younger and competing against the world’s best?

I can say that I trained hard. I always liked to train and I still like to train. It was for sure an important factor in my success. When I was 14-15 yr old, I trained 3 times/week, 18: 5 times/week, 19: 6 times/week. Later, I trained 12 times/week with a weekly mileage of 140/160k. I always been in the top French from my beginning till I stopped in 1999. When I was 15, I was French champion for school (there was no national champ for this age category for the clubs). In the age categories 16-17, I was 2nd (with club). As a junior, I was the French champion for cross country, I had the 13th world best performance for junior on 3000m (8:10). As I moved on to the open category, I finished a few times on the podium at the French champs for cross country, 5000m, half-marathon. I also ran in the European & World Champs. 

Throughout my pro career, I concentrated on cross-country during the winter and the track during summer. Cross-country races are very popular in Europe. For the Brittany championship, there are 30 000 spectators. When I won the national junior title, I was in the first page of the newspaper. 

I ran my first road race when I was 22. For us top athletes, you’ll compete on the track early in your career and only later when you have reached your best or you fed up with track, you go on the road. When we run on the track, we only do a few road races after the track season to make some money. My priority was not to run for the money but for the performance. I was paid by my club, Nike, the federation and could concentrate only on my performance.

When I was pro, my typical day would be: morning-training, afternoon- sleep then training again. Sometime, it can be boring but if you want to succeed, this is the way to do. But I’ve always been a very motivated person. Nothing could stop me to train, it could rain, snow, be it very cold or very windy (+100km/h). And it can make the difference on the race day. When the conditions are tough, I feel that it will be tougher for the others. When I was in Brittany, during winter, the weather was very bad and it made me very strong mentally. When I was in the South of France, the climate was much easier except the strong wind. I got lucky coz I could go for training camp in US or South Africa during winter the second stage of my career.

I ran my first marathon only near the end of my career. It was in 1998, after 6 weeks at the end of road competitions in 21km, 10 miles and so on. I was tired but I wanted to try and do the distance. I ran 2hours 16mins! The second, was in 1999. This time, I’ve prepared myself well for London and I was ready to run 2h10m, but unfortunately for me, I was hit by a stomach pain and stopped half way. Two weeks later, not with the same shape, I decided to run in Turin (Italy). It was a hot day with a hot sun, I ran 39k in the pace of 2h12m, then started to walk-run, feeling dehydrated and finished in a time of 2:15:18. I ended my running career a few months later.

Competitions in Europe are much tougher than here in Malaysia. We have the best runners from Africa (Kenyans, Ethiopians, Moroccan…) and they were many Kenyans (more than 500 about 10 yrs ago, now probably more). And there was no way that foreigners were not allowed to run. Otherwise, you will see all the racism associations suing the organisers. Anyways, runners don’t have this kind of mentality in Europe. It helps you to progress and improve on your performances.

5. What would be your favourite workout?

Hmmm, I like all types of training. The most difficult session are the hills session, e.g. 10x300m. I liked track sessions coz I was fast and if you want to reach the top, you have to train on the track. I had 2 track sessions per week. My favorite workout was maybe 5x1000m, I could run like 2:32-2:35 (during summer). At this kind of speed, you will feel great sensation. I also liked 10x400m. I could run 57s-58s and the last one 55s. The more difficult ones were the long sessions like 5x2000m during winter (5:35-5:40) after a long weight session the morning and 3x2000m during summer (5:15). Summer training was much more fun coz I trained shorter and faster. During winter, this is what we call the heavy work & quantity and not so much on quality. With the weight training, we can feel heavy but winter is the time to prepare for summer competitions.

Since 1999, I don’t go on the track anymore. My pro running career is behind me. Now, I just run to have fun. If you ask me to give you a picture of me running, it will be me running on the beach wearing only a short and smiling. (Like the photo below...sorry Peter, saw this in your FB page!)

Anyway, I have no speed now and I would be too disappointed with the chrono if I was running track sessions. But if I could get back my speed, I think I will start again…I’m still very motivated after 34 yrs of running. I think I will run all my life. I don’t miss competitions but I can’t live without running.

6. You mentioned before that you have met Haile Gebreselassie before? How did that happen and how is Haile in person?

I got the opportunity to run with Haile in 1998 or 1999. It was the first and only indoor cross-country race, and it was organised in Paris Bercy. Bercy is a fantastic place where it can be transformed into many sporting activities (tennis, surf, motocross, track & field, concert…). There, they made the route similar to a motocross race (up & down, sharp turns right-left…). It was shown live at 8pm on TV. There were 20 runners invited. Not only Haile but also Khalid Skah (world champion) was there. Before the start, Haile came smiling, as usual, to shake the hands of all the runners. The 8k race was exciting. It was run through many laps as each lap was only a short one. After the third lap, at each lap, the last two runners will be eliminated, and finally only 8 will cover the full distance. I finished position 8th. It was very tough for me as I’m tall and we were all the time taking very sharp turns. Of course, Haile won the race.  Unfortunately, they never organise the race again. All the runners really had fun.

7. What do you think of the state of running in Malaysia (e.g. is it popular, the race organization, the competitors)? 

It is not that bad. There are even rooms for a big improvement in few sectors. In Malaysia, there are many runners in races but most of the time, usually he same runners are running the races. The big races such as the KL International Marathon (KLIM) or Penang Bridge International Marathon (PBIM), both attract a lot of participants but more than half do not run and this will interrupt the race for the real runners. I like to participate in races. I get to meet many old friends and making new ones. 

The problem for most runners here is that there are not many places to train. Runners have to train all the time on the road. This is so bad. There are not a lot of parks, can’t run on the grass or trails. If you’ve been to Europe and you will see, everywhere, you will find a nice place to run, you don’t need to run on the road. Here, there are only condos growing. Why are there no development for parks and facilities for people to practice sports?

As for the organisation of races, the negative point for me is, except PBIM, the traffics were never totally closed. Even for KLIM, with all the VIP involved, they cannot close the roads for 6 hours with a 4am start! City like Tokyo with 30 millions inhabitants can close the city. Even a city like NY can close the city the  whole day! But KL cannot close till 11am!!! Maybe, that’s why there were no more than 1500 runners for the marathon category, but neighboring Singapore, gets 20k runners in 3 weeks. We run with the lorries, motorbikes and the pollution. In France, you cannot get the authorisation to organise a race, even the small one, if you don’t have the route free of traffic. It is very difficult to find a route to organise a race as there are traffic everywhere and you can’t stop it the time of the race. Not easy for organisers and runners!

Some organisers don’t respect the runners and they are very rude. They forget, if there are no runners, there won’t be races. Luckily, we have some races, like those organised by Pacesetters Malaysia, where people welcome you with a smile.

As for some organisers, they are very good in organising but don’t know anything about running. But it is more difficult to organise than to run! 

I often see runners complaining about the medals or the t-shirt but if you come to run to Europe, only the top 3 will have a medal, that’s it! The t-shirts are not of very good quality and certainly not brands like Adidas, Nike or NB brands. No breakfast, no goodies but safety yes!

AS for competitors, the level in South East Asia is very low. I think when comparing to other places in the world, where people do sports for few generations and give their sporting genes to their kids. Here, not many people practice sport and the past generation maybe again less. This is your culture. For us, sport is like eating and sleeping. It’s part of our life! We have facilities, clubs, and a lot of sports in school and most of these sports are cheap. 

Regarding Malaysian running, one thing, there are no elite athletes in the country and when I see how the things work, it’s not for a better tomorrow. You are not an elite athlete if you run 15 or 16 minutes for 5k. Just to give you an idea, the time just to qualify for the French champs on 5000m is 13:50.  Some will say “don’t compare with Europe” but we are talking “elite”, means international level. To have elite one day, you must have formation of young athletes by the federation and the clubs. You must practice sport at school. But here, there are only few clubs. And mostly older people in the clubs, who come to run for fun, to stay healthy.  The day they stop running, I don’t know if there will be enough runners to make a race. To make an athlete, it takes time; you can’t do it in a year! It takes a long time. Now, as for the ones who are the best in country, they are not very competitive as they try to avoid running with the foreigners. Most only think about money and I’m not sure they enjoy running. I never see them socializsng with the recreational runners.  One thing, they don’t come to make friends. 

They should be the ones who help and motivate the other runners, like it happens in other countries. Just take Singapore for example. Mok (Ying Ren), the best Singaporean runner, is a star in his country coz he shares, meets other runners. (To know more about Mok Ying Ren, pls click on this link: Part 1 & Part 2. Or get some tips from him, click here.) The mentality of the top Singaporean runners are totally the opposite of Malaysian top runners. When I see them, they always smile, have fun but when I see the top Malaysian, even on the podium, not smiling!

Recreational runners are the real heart of the Malaysian running community. The spirit are good; they have groups where everyone is welcome. This is the way to do it. Sometimes, I even thought of joining them but my training pace is much faster, so it's not easy. 

8. What’s your advice for beginners who are new to running?

When you start running, go check with your doctor if you are fit to run, then you can start to train progressively. Try to join a group, they will be happy to share their experiences with you and you will have more motivation and fun. The first year, don’t run races more than 10-12k.

9. And what about those who are keen to train for a marathon? What  kind of advice would you’ll be giving them? 

I think many runners are scared to jump to 42km and this is true, with this hot & humid climate, it’s not easy. But if 20,000 Singaporeans can do it Malaysians BOLEH! Most of the Malaysian marathoners are over 40 yrs old. More runners should try it. 

Planning is very important. If say, you want to run a marathon, then you have to plan well. Running in smaller and shorter races before your main race will keep the motivation high. You will be measuring your progress in those small races, and you can see mistakes you commit or the right thing you have done and improve on them.

Don’t overtrain or overdo things, as that leads to burnout and injuries. Build up your training slowly, because as a recreational runner you don’t have enough time to do what full-time runners do — for example, heavy loads of training, taking naps after training or training camps.

10. Is it advisable to move up to a marathon distance when you are fairly new to running? 

No…see my comments in no. 8.  

11. Any final words to those runners out there looking to run as fast like you or even starting out running?

First, you need some good potential-good physical qualities, after that you need to train hard. Not everyone can be an elite runner but all can have fun, enjoy running and progress to become faster.

Almost each week, I receive messages of runners asking for advices. They don’t know how to train coz there’s no one to help them. 

I am thinking to start to train a group of young motivated runners with minimum qualities who could become the top Malaysian runners of tomorrow. They will have a different mentality than the ones who are now the best. But I must say it’s not easy. I must find a place to train (I don’t want road training), to gather the runners, it would be very difficult because of traffic and different location of each runner.  I would need a sponsor too who is willing to invest in this group for training camp…

In the interim, I’m going to organize some races in 2011, trying to give to the runners what they want: a good race! So look out for it!

Well that's it for the interview. Hope you guys don't start going out running laps and laps trying to match your time against those of Peter's. Remember his advice, plan well and train progressively! For more bio on Peter's achievements, click on this link to IAAF site. 

He's a very nice person and enjoys helping runners. I've got some tips from him before clocking my PB in Berlin Marathon this year!

Hope you guys enjoy the read!

(Note: This follows up from an interview with Woo Chan Yew. Hope to interview more runners in future, that will motivate more people into the running community!