Cruising the streets of Edmonton, you spot this vanity plate — LIV ALV. As the silver sports utility vehicle pulls away, you scratch your head.
What the heck does LIV ALV mean?
Dr. Jeff Shmoorkoff is happy you asked. Because those six letters are shorthand for his motto — LIV ALV stands for LIVE ALIVE.
Shmoorkoff is someone who refuses to get cheated. Tightly packed into his hours on this planet are commitments to his medical practice, to his loved ones, to his pursuit of multi-sport excellence.
“Patients and colleagues, I’ve seen too many people who work their butts off,” says the 61-year-old, “then they retire and they don’t get to enjoy their retirement, because they get cancer, a stroke or a heart attack.
“I believe in doing things while I can and enjoying it — and I have no regrets,”
Meaning Shmoorkoff pushes the pace.
As a younger man, his unsupported 12,000-kilometre trek around Canada on a $250 bike was remarkable. And his extensive marathon cycling resumé, including a handful of Paris-Brest-Paris events? Impressive.
But where he’s made his name, especially in recent years, is the multi-sport realm. There are few folks like Shmoorkoff.
Who never hesitates to pack his bags. To experience a World Triathlon age-group championship event, he’ll travel.
Who never fails to finish, no matter the task. Duathlon, standard and sprint. Triathlon, standard and sprint and long. Aquathlon and aquabike. Plus cross-country variations of all of the above.
Since 2001, he’d been steadily fortifying his world championship portfolio, a race here, a race there.
But when World Triathlon introduced a newfangled approach for age-group events — one venue hosting all of the races in a single week — it grabbed the attention of keeners like Shmoorkoff.
This represented opportunity. A chance to, you know, compete in every event.
The format was unveiled in Penticton, B.C., in 2017, and Schmoorkoff celebrated by knocking off four races in nine days. “That’s where my goals really changed.”
Away he went. Fyn, Denmark, in 2018, five finishes. Four more in 2019 in Pontevedra, Spain. An incredible six in Ibiza, Spain, in 2023.
“I don’t go to win,” says Shmoorkoff, who, in those four years, attained Legend Award status by completing at least four events. “My challenge is to do five or six events in 10 days. Why not challenge yourself if you’re going to travel around the world?”
With an attitude like that, things add up.
Last summer, when he bagged the triathlon sprint in Hamburg, Germany, a personal target had been reached — 60 world championship starts (and finishes) by the time he was 60 years old.
“That was a great, great achievement. I realized, ‘Holy smokes, I had fun doing all these races,'” says Shmoorkoff. “For me, I’m never going to be in the top 10 or the top 15 — I’ll be in the bottom quarter, but I’ll recover within a day. You go slower, but you keep going. You’ve got to train your mind as much as your body.”
Now what? “I’m kind of goofy,” says Shmoorkoff, chuckling. “Maybe I’ll go for 100 world championships — but I don’t know by what age.”
A fractured left ankle in a mountain-bike mishap in Victoria in July couldn’t prevent him from getting on the start line in Spain.
His time off to recover, though, granted the man a rare opportunity for reflection.
Because cost is high. It’s worth noting that every year Shmoorkoff must qualify for world championship berths, which means traipsing all over Canada. Then consider the expenditure involving the world showcases.
A lot of money, a lot of time away from family, a lot of time away from his practice. He concedes that it’s “tough” — in every way. Balance is tricky.
“It’s just something I chose to do,” says Shmoorkoff, who, with wife Cheryl, has two sons, Stephen and Austin. “Honestly, you have to have a very understanding family. There’s a price to pay, but there’s also a time to back off and say enough’s enough.
“You want to stay healthy in mind, spirit and body, but not over-do it.”
It’s not easy. A week on the job, he points out, can chew up as many as 80 hours. Which leaves six to 10 weekly hours of training — 20 if he’s peaking for an Ironman.
His professional and athletic lives have always been intertwined. In his early days as a doctor, he was carrying 240 pounds on his six-foot frame.
“Working too much and gaining weight. I said, ‘This is not healthy. How can I be a better doc? How can I help people want to get better?’ Well, I’ve got to show it in my own life.”
So, with everyone’s well-being in mind, he started running. Already a cycling enthusiast, his multi-sport career started taking shape.
Now, a quarter of a century later, he sees no finish line.
“I’ll keep going based on what I see those in their 80s achieving,” Shmoorkoff says. “I hope to still be doing this for another 20 years.”