I ENTERED MY FIRST TRIATHLON for fun at age 19. I won, and the prize was a vacation at Club Med. I was hooked. But I had a running scholarship to the University of New South Wales, in Sydney, so I went back to running. After two years I lost my scholarship—for partying—and didn't take sports seriously again until I graduated. I got a job at a bank but quit after six months: I wanted to travel the world, and I thought the best way would be to compete as a triathlete. I sold my surfboards and bought a ticket to Paris. I entered the first race I heard about, in Avignon, and got fourth. After six weeks I entered a World Cup circuit race in Paris and finished sixth. This guy came up to me and said, "Who the hell are you?" He was the head of the International Triathlon Union, and he invited me to the next World Cup, the following week in Canada. I came in first and won $10,000. I was 22. I called my dad and said, "Guess what?"