Reflections Interview: José Javier Montón Cruz — Coach, Competitor, and River Racer

Interview by Ben Lane

When José Javier Montón Cruz says swimming is his life, he isn’t reaching for a slogan. He learned to swim at four, grew up on the Mediterranean coast, and today works full-time at a swimming club, coordinating lessons and coaching swimmers through their own first lengths. In between, he races — with affection for river marathons like Spain’s UltraEbre, which he won in 2022 and again in 2024. An injury kept him out this past season, but his plan for 2026 is disarmingly simple: “I want to win it for a third time.”

What follows is a conversation about craft — the way a coach-athlete designs training around a busy job, the mental habits that carry you through the last, stubborn kilometres, and a race-day approach that is as personal as it is effective.

“Swimming is my life”

Ben Lane: José, thanks for making time. For readers meeting you for the first time, who are you — and why do you swim?

José Javier Montón Cruz: Swimming is my life. I’ve been in the water since I was four. My parents didn’t know how to swim and living by the sea they wanted my sister and me to learn early so we’d be safe. I never really left the pool. Now I work at a club — I coach, and I coordinate all the swimming courses. It’s my profession and my passion.

Ben: You had to skip UltraEbre this year with a back injury, but you raced — and won — in 2022 and 2024, right?

José: Yes. I was injured this season, but I’m back training. My focus is UltraEbre 2026.

The coach who coaches himself

Ben: Let’s talk preparation. You juggle a coaching role with your own training. How do you structure things — and what principles matter most?

José: I’m my own coach, which helps. The big rule is to listen to the body. If I feel good, I train; if I’m tired, I change the plan. I like two sessions in a day when work allows — some combination of swimming, running, and gym. People think marathon swimming is just about metres in the pool, but strength matters: I do targeted work four or five times a week, especially core. It holds your stroke together when you’re fatigued.

Ben: How about nutrition in training?

José: I eat everything — healthy, varied, normal food. No strict plan. The goal is to arrive at sessions fuelled and to recover well enough to do it again tomorrow.

“Prepare the head”

Ben: If a reader is stepping up from, say, 10 km to a first 30+ km river marathon, what single piece of advice would you give?

José: Prepare the head. Long training is about confidence. I tell people: build sessions of two hours or more at steady effort. When you’ve done that consistently, you stand on the start line knowing you can hold rhythm when it’s boring or hard. And don’t forget the gym — strong hips, stable core, shoulders that last.

Race craft at UltraEbre

Ben: Walk us through your race-day approach at UltraEbre. Your 2024 winning time was 5:12 — quick for a river that can change character year by year. How do you think about pacing and focus?

José: I like to divide the marathon into sections. Short stages. In my head it becomes Stage 1, Stage 2, Stage 3… that structure keeps me from thinking about 30 kilometres all at once. I also study who will be there — I know my rivals, and I have a strategy before we start. But during the swim, it’s rhythm. You respect the river, you stay relaxed, you make good decisions.

Ben: Everyone hits a patch where the brain starts arguing with the body. What happens then?

José: The sections help and so does experience. The river can be kind early and demanding later, so I expect a psychological dip. I don’t try to “win the swim” in that moment — I just win the next section. If you stay long, keep your line, and don’t panic about speed, you come through it.

Feeds, your way (and why that’s personal)

Ben: Your feeding strategy is famously light. Can you explain it — and the caveats?

José: In training I almost never eat, and I drink very little — just a little water. So, in the race I hardly stop. Maybe one or two bars total, and less than half a bottle to drink — usually cola with lemon and an isotonic mix. That works for my stomach and my pacing. But I’m careful to say: this is not advice. It’s what my body is trained to tolerate. Another swimmer might need more fuel to perform and to stay safe. The key is to practice your feeding strategy in training and own your plan.

Ben: I’ve found the same — sometimes you don’t want food. The danger is confusing appetite with need.

José: Exactly. Know yourself. If eating during hard effort upsets your stomach, a minimal plan can be better — if you’ve trained for it. If you need more, plan more. The worst option is experimenting on race day.

Training weeks that work

Ben: Can we get practical about a typical heavy week when you’re building for UltraEbre?

José: I don’t copy-paste weeks, but a good template looks like this:

• Swim most days, alternating endurance (steady aerobic), and strength/speed (pull, paddles, threshold sets).
• Two long aerobic swims of 90–120 minutes minimum.
• Gym four to five times focused on core stability, scapular control, hip extension, and posterior chain.
• Run for general endurance and economy — it’s efficient and keeps the heart honest.
• One true recovery day or active recovery session if I need it.

And again, if I wake up unmotivated, I adjust. Consistency beats perfection.

The psychology of racing to win

Ben: You’re candid about motivation: “I want to win.” How does that shape the way you experience a marathon swim?

José: It gives the mind a clear task. I know the field, I understand the river, and I build a plan around those realities. But I don’t try to dominate every minute. Winning often means spending wisely: staying relaxed when the river is fast, then being brave when it’s slow; conserving during the easy kilometres, then committing in the last sections when everyone else is negotiating with themselves.

Ben: And if the plan goes wrong?

José: It always does. That’s why you train the head. You simplify: stroke, breathe, sight, feed. Hold technique. Don’t let a bad five minutes steal the next 30.

Injury, return, and the 2026 goal

Ben: You mentioned a back injury kept you from racing this year. Where are you now?

José: Back in the water and building. The goal is UltraEbre 2026, and yes — I want the third win. It depends on work and how the preparation goes, but that’s the focus.

Ben: Any other events on your list?

José: I enjoy river marathons most — it suits me. I also run (marathons and half marathons), partly for the travel and the experience. But if the job allows the preparation I want, UltraEbre is the priority.

Takeaways for first timers

For readers eyeing a first UltraEbre or similar 30–35 km river swim, José’s distilled advice is clear:

1. Train your mind as deliberately as your body. Use two-hour pool or open-water sessions to normalize long, steady effort.
2. Lift with purpose. Core strength and stability protect form when fatigue hits; make the gym non-negotiable.
3. Break the race into sections. Think in stages, not hours — it reduces anxiety and improves decision-making.
4. Personalize your feeds — and practice them. Whether minimal or frequent, your plan should be rehearsed, not improvised.
5. Respect the river’s rhythm. Expect easy patches and hard ones; save emotional energy for the final third.

Closing notes

There’s a pleasing symmetry to José’s life in the water: the coach who coaches himself; the athlete who races to win but talks most about feeling, focus, and form; the swimmer whose parents couldn’t swim, now guiding others from their first breath-holds to their first marathons. UltraEbre, for him, isn’t just a course on a map. It’s a rhythm: steady work, quiet patience, and one decisive push when the river turns heavy.

And 2026? Simple, he says, with a small smile you can hear: “I want to win again.”

José Javier Montón Cruz is a Spanish swim coach and endurance river specialist. A two-time winner of the UltraEbre (2022, 2024), he balances club coaching with self-directed training built on core strength, long steady swims, and a pared-back feeding plan practiced in training. Age 43.