Original language: Spanish (radio segment on Tribu al Extremo, 106.1 FM).
By Juan Zurita Victoria, MBA
Oax Sport. Athlete Support and Programs.
Report also available in Spanish and French.
This blog series
Jueves de Oax Sport is our weekly space on Tribu al Extremo (106.1 FM). We use this segment to talk about sport in Oaxaca through athletes, coaches, teams, and the people who help local sport grow.
Previous episodes: Launch episode, Jazmín Cruz, Emily Barrera, Shunca Biani, and Yedany González.
Episode details
- Host and text: Juan Zurita Victoria, MBA
- Guest coach: Jorge Luis Velasco Martínez
- Team or club: Titanes Sport Clinic
- Guest social media: Facebook and Instagram
- Show: Tribu al Extremo (106.1 FM)
- Segment: Jueves de Oax Sport
- Air date: Thursday, March 19, 2026
- Focus: Cycling, triathlon, duathlon, coaching, discipline, athlete care, and endurance sport
- Listen live: Every Thursday, 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Oaxaca time, through Tribu al Extremo on Facebook.
Focus of the week
Focus: Coaching endurance athletes in Oaxaca.
- Jorge spoke about his start in cycling, his studies in sport science, and his work with cycling, triathlon, and duathlon athletes.
- He explained why a coach must be close to athletes and understand more than training volume.
- He talked about fear, pressure, confidence, and the mental side of competition.
- He shared why he values discipline over talent when athletes want to reach higher levels.
- This episode did not cover a specific Oax Sport support case.
30-second recap
- Jorge Luis Velasco Martínez is a sport science graduate and is studying a master’s degree in sport science and high performance.
- He coaches cycling, triathlon, duathlon, and other endurance athletes.
- He started cycling through his uncle and cousin after a sedentary period in school.
- A university athletics experience helped him decide to leave accounting and study sport science.
- His coaching view centers on empathy, trust, mental wellbeing, and serious preparation.
- He prefers a disciplined athlete over a talented athlete who does not commit.
- His athletes are preparing for mountain biking, road cycling, triathlon, duathlon, and qualifying events.
Interview in text
1. Who is Jorge Luis Velasco Martínez?
Q (Juan): Jorge, please introduce yourself. Tell us your name, where you are from, and what you train.
A (Jorge): My name is Jorge Luis Velasco Martínez. I have a degree in sport science, and I am now studying a master’s degree in sport science and high performance. I coach cycling, triathlon, and endurance sport.
2. How cycling entered his life
Q (Juan): How did you start in sport?
A (Jorge): I started cycling because of an uncle. He invited me to my first ride and helped me get closer to the sport. Before that, I played basketball as a child, but I stopped when I entered secondary school. I was very sedentary. It was school and nothing else.
3. From accounting to sport science
Q (Juan): When did you decide that sport was what you wanted to study and work in?
A (Jorge): It was not really cycling at first. It was athletics. I had the chance to go to a university competition, and I went with you and our coach. That experience showed me sport from a more professional point of view. It pulled me in. I decided to leave accounting and enter sport science.
Jorge said he first entered accounting because of money and the fear that coaches do not earn much. Still, he did not feel comfortable. He knew he had to make a decision.
A (Jorge): I remember that conversation with the coach on the way back from the trip. I liked sport. I was passionate about it. I wanted to do it. I arrived at school and did not feel comfortable. So I had to decide. If I did not decide then, I was never going to take the next step.
The decision was difficult for his family at first. Jorge said his parents were uncertain for about a week, but they saw that he had taken his studies seriously and supported the change.
4. What he learned from competing
Q (Juan): During your athletic career, was there one result or competition that stood out?
A (Jorge): I had the chance to participate at national events. I was national runner-up in 2017, I think, in an intermediate category. I also had some national podiums. I was never first place, and I was clear that I was not the one who stood out the most, but I was always present.
Jorge now works with athletes from the coaching side. He has traveled to national events, competed, and seen the limits of local sport structures firsthand.
5. Becoming a coach
Q (Juan): When did you decide to stop focusing on competition and become a coach?
A (Jorge): When I entered the university, I also spoke with my parents. Cycling is expensive, and paying for university is also expensive. I understood that. I decided to leave my own sport a bit to apply what I was learning.
Jorge said the second year of his sport science degree was the point when he focused more on coaching. He started helping with athletics and worked with Profe Abel during the early stages of his development as a coach.
A (Jorge): Those were the first steps you take as a coach, when you still do not have full awareness of what to do. But they were the start of the process.
6. Why practice matters for young coaches
Q (Juan): How important was it to combine your studies with practical work?
A (Jorge): It is very important. I now see it when I teach in the sport training degree program at UABJO. I tell students they need to get close to the sport area from the coaching side and lose that fear.
Jorge said it is hard at first to stand in front of athletes and parents. A young coach may doubt their knowledge and wonder whether everyone else is doubting them too. Practice helps build confidence.
A (Jorge): Do not wait until you leave university and someone says they want to hire you. In our area it does not work that way. We have to build experience and a record with people. People begin to know us through our work and the quality of what we do.
7. What sport science taught him
Q (Juan): What is the most valuable thing you learned in your degree that you now apply with athletes?
A (Jorge): Anatomy, physiology, and biomechanics are important. But something I learned beyond the subjects was humility. We have to listen to other people and not believe we know everything. In sport, every body changes and every body is different.
8. His coaching philosophy
Q (Juan): How would you describe your training philosophy?
A (Jorge): I try to be very empathetic and close to my athletes. I have learned that it is not only about training load or prescribing a session. It is also about being part of the process.
Jorge said athletes sometimes come to him because they feel bad and need to talk. He tries to support them, give advice, and guide them toward psychological support when needed.
A (Jorge): I believe an athlete in a good mental state can perform better. I always try to approach the athletes, talk with them, and support them.
He also spoke about the social side of training. A team should not feel like a place where athletes only arrive, train, and leave. For many young athletes, sport also forms friendships, trust, and healthy relationships.
Q (Juan): After everything you have lived in sport, what does sport mean to you today?
A (Jorge): For me, it is a passion. I feel very fortunate to have my work. Sport fills me as a person. It is not only about prescribing training loads or telling someone to ride for two hours. It is about being part of each athlete’s process and dreams.
Jorge said he feels responsible because athletes and parents trust him. When an athlete wins, he feels that joy. When an athlete does not reach a goal, he also feels the frustration and asks what he can improve as a coach.
9. The mental side of competition
Q (Juan): In cycling, duathlon, and triathlon, how much does the mental side influence performance compared with the physical side?
A (Jorge): It depends more on the athlete’s experience than on the sport. I usually want athletes to start competing and get close to competition, even if their level is not ready to win. They need to see how they react to that kind of stimulus.
Jorge has seen many reactions before races. Some athletes cry. Some get stomach problems. Some do not want to talk. Some get angry. For some, the pressure starts two days before a competition. For others, it starts a full week before.
A (Jorge): Fear helps us stay alert and aware of what we are doing. It is normal to feel fear. What is not normal is allowing it to control us or stop us from doing something well.
He does not believe one mental tool works for everyone. Meditation may help one athlete and make another laugh or fall asleep. The coach has to adapt the tool to the person.
10. Overconfidence and pre-race mental approach
Q (Juan): What mistakes do you see in athletes who compete without enough guidance?
A (Jorge): One thing I have seen is excess confidence. Sometimes too much confidence works against the athlete. If the race does not start the way they planned, their whole race falls apart.
Jorge also spoke about athletes who stay locked in a room all day thinking only about the competition. He prefers a calmer approach. Athletes can walk, see other things, return, talk about the race, and stay focused without burning themselves out mentally.
11. Talent vs. discipline
Q (Juan): What matters more, talent or discipline?
A (Jorge): I prefer an athlete with discipline over an athlete with talent, a thousand times. An athlete with talent can sometimes become arrogant because things come easily. That can work against them.
Jorge clarified that talent can produce strong athletes when it comes with discipline. But talent alone is not enough for high performance, medals, or long-term development.
What is next
Jorge said his team has several goals ahead. In cycling, athletes are preparing for the first stage of the National Mountain event and a road qualifying event. In triathlon and duathlon, the team is preparing for Ixtapa-Zihuatanejo, Huatulco, a CONADE mountain biking final stage, and a world qualifying event in Veracruz for duathlon and triathlon.
Quick Q&A for athletes, families, and readers
What does this episode show about coaching?
It shows that coaching is more than writing workouts. A coach also builds trust, reads the athlete, supports the family, and adapts the process to each person.
Why does the mental side matter in endurance sport?
Competition brings fear, pressure, stomach problems, anger, silence, and overthinking. Athletes need tools that match their personality and experience.
Is talent enough to reach a high level?
Jorge’s answer was clear. Talent helps, but discipline matters more when an athlete wants to reach medals, high performance, and long-term growth.
Is it ever too late to start sport?
Jorge said it is never too late. Sport can begin for health, competition, friendship, or a personal change.
How you can support today
Transparency
Oax Sport Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit (EIN: 86-3407818). Oax Sport A.C. is a registered Mexican nonprofit (RFC: OSP230216SG0). Contact us for receipts or tax documentation.
Listen every Thursday
Listen to Tribu al Extremo on 106.1 FM every Thursday, 7:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., Oaxaca time. You can also follow the broadcast through Tribu al Extremo on Facebook.
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