London ITU World Championships
London ITU World Championships
“Cold Weather Specialists” the team bike mechanic called us after our bike check. It definitely is starting to feel that way. The weather in London so similar to Orange, it suited us.
But beside the weather, London HELD the triathlon event of the year. Seeing Hyde Park transform into a triathlon centre was awesome. Seeing the epic finish line of Nicola Spirig and Lisa Norden’s sprint for gold. Reminiscing the scenes of the Olympics on TV. After admiring the scenes it wasn’t long before…
Aquathon
As my third world championship race again, “lucky” enough to be in the first wave, 150 fellow triathletes sitting beside me on the pontoon. We entered the 15 degree water and the gasps were huge from either side of me. GO!!! A technical swim course had a left turn early, wow was it aggressive. Exiting the swim we hit transition flying.
1KM Swim
Tristan 13:23
Steph 16:44
Out of transition, we hit the 2.5km loop, hearing cheers from bystanders the whole way round. A long false flat wore down the people including me. I found a group which was running a similar pace that was always changing. A U turn for the finish next to a Brazilian, 100 meter sprint on the iconic blue carpet… surprisingly very very slippery! Satisfied with our runs and Steph running a PB.
5KM Run
Tristan 18:43
Steph 23:25
A relief to finish the first race with the legs still feeling pretty good.
Tristan 33:23
Steph 41:21
After the race it was time to celebrate with the Australian Team dinner and Opening Ceremony. The Orange athletes were out in force; Steph, Luke, Tom and myself. The night was amazing, partying in Triathlon (rarely known as Trafalgar) Square. What an atmosphere?! We got to meet and TALK to some amazing countries including the energetic Mexicans to the quiet PNG crew and including first women to compete for Iran.
A day of rest before it was our big day.
The Sprint World Championships
The rain opened upon us as the three got ready for the race. Leaving 5 minutes apart Luke (16-19 Male), Steph (16-19 Female) and then me (20-24 Male), we were herded through marshalling to that long pontoon. We started similar course to earlier but I was wiser than last time getting around the buoy in the first group…. Way easier. We all made it out of the swim and into the wet transition.
750M Swim
Luke 9:54
Tristan 10:13
Steph 12:56
20KM Bike
The bike course… where to start… a 3 lap course, wet conditions and 100 athletes per 5 minutes entering the course. It wasn’t for the faint hearted. Smooth roads plus rain, packs of triathletes on tribars, 20-30 cobble stoned speed bumps, crashes/flats left, right and centre. It was the most chaotic course around it wasn’t for the over thinkers, but for the daring the results were there.
Luke 35:36
Tristan 39:32
Steph 44:05
All off the bike and now through the mud pit called transition. My favourite running conditions; wet and no wind perfect for a fast run! We all smashed it, passing hundreds in our way and breaking PBs.
5KM Run
Luke 16:57
Tristan 16:57
Steph 22:49
Finish
Luke
Tristan
Steph
All finished completely exhausted and battered. But we were there and we raced hard. Maybe it wasn’t completely ideal or as our perfect races. We all brought something back; whether it was a fast run, pick up after a crash or our first big race. I think we all want to thank our families and friends for the support and encouragement.
Twist