How can some of the trainers even last like they do?

[Darkstorm16]

Ok in their time as young pokemon trainers, trainers like Volkner, Flint, Candice, Aaron, Bertha, Lorelei, they rely on a specific type, my question is that we know most of them (except Candice and Volkner) entered their own respective regions League competition and won thats how they probably got their titles, but how come when they were young they were good, I mean how long can a winning streek for a fire trainer last when some dude can come up with water? I just would like to know how did some of the trainers become respective and tough when they just rely on one type?

 

[ChaosMage]

Well, naturally they will have counters for types they're usually weak to. Like Flint's Infernape has Thunder Punch. But it certainly isn't the way you'd expect a trainer to go if they wish to rise through the ranks.

 

[WorldClassTrainer]

Yeah they prob. had combo fire/water/grass...ext types

 

[ijea4444]

For all we know people like Candice do own Fire, Flying,etc types, but when they became gym leader or E4 members, they started using pokemon only of their type. Kinda like Misty and Brock although Brock did the reverse lol, but you get what I mean.

 

[Lorde]

How can trainers in the anime last this long and achieve so much by using one type of Pokemon alone? Well the games and the anime differ greatly. I think that type advantages are almost absent in the anime so most trainers can go far with just one type. If that weren't the case, most Pokemon owned by Gym Leaders have several types of moves so those would come in handy.

 

[Encyclopika]

I think that's what makes them really great trainers, deserving of the title. Even though the game =/= the anime, you have to admit that, if your Pokemon is at a high level, you can plow through any competition, no matter the type.
And as you may recall, some of the Pokemon the E4 and gym leaders own are either multi-type themselves (Bertha's Whiscash) or have a secret weapon for just the occasion (Flint's Infernape's Thunderpunch).

I think that if they became gym leader or E4, that they owned only that type of Pokemon through the whole way and earned it by being a master at that type of Pokemon.

Brock is a super exception, as he'd rather be a breeder than a gym leader, he's collected all sorts of Pokemon. And Misty had all water types and continued to, before and after being a gym leader - Togepi really doesn't count.

 

[Profesco]

What ijea and Encyclopika said.

Maybe Gyms are required to be type specialists. Maybe the Leaders have experience training any and every Pokemon type out there, but either they were made to choose a type to focus on in order to become a Gym Leader or they became a Gym Leader and then simply started using only their favorite type.

Or, maybe they're good enough to be Gym Leaders and Elite members precisely because they were strong and smart enough to carve out a name for themselves while using just a single type. Obviously, using one type of Pokemon makes things harder for you and may even put you in what seems to be an unwinnable situation. If you can still find your way to victory with those odds stacked against you, you certainly deserve the status that Leaders and Elites get.