Yesterday was a big day out for ATC with a great crew heading to Loughrea for a National Series Sprint, Junior National Series festival and a Try-a-Tri for those wishing to venture into the world of racing.
First off were the juniors, with incredibly competitive fields and some of the best up and coming athletes in the county taking part. Our first athlete off, Senan Mc Donnell finished in third place overall in the 14/15 age group, with the third fastest swim and run splits. He was followed by big brother William in the 16/17 age group, who took another brilliant third place overall. What an exciting future lies ahead for these talented lads.
Next up was our own Declan Kelly, taking part in his very first open event in the Try-a-Tri over a 300m swim, 11km cycle and 3km run. Overcoming the nerves, Declan got stuck in, coming out of the water in 7th place. A blistering performance on the bike and run saw him taking 2nd place overall, an amazing achievement, especially considering he couldn't swim a year ago.
The Senior National Series event saw athletes tackle a choppy 750m swim, a hilly tough 20km cycle, and a 5km run. Again a quality field lined up, with 9 ATC athletes - Michael, Olivia, Ger, Mark, John, Ambrose, David, Kasia and Brian all taking part.
Again some great performances with Olivia taking a brilliant 4th place overall in the ladies race, and first in her age group. Michael led in the men, also taking first place in his age group, followed by Ger and Mark who both third place in their respective age groups. A great achievement for the club to get 7 podium places overall on the day with 12 athletes in total taking part.
However, it wasn't just about the podiums. It was about the great camaraderie and buzz, being back racing together and enjoying the great personal challenges, supporting each other and just having a great day out with all the other athletes from clubs all around the country. We have achieved a lot ourselves during these difficult times over the past two years, but nothing matches that feeling of lining up in a Premier event alongside our clubmates, friends, rivals (friendly of course) and fellow athletes, and testing ourselves to the limits. How we have missed that.
Big thanks and congrats to Predator Triathlon Club and the Loughrea Triathlon organisers for a great day.
#athlonetriathlonclub #athlonetriclub #ATCMovingForMentalHealth #TrainingTogetherWhileStayingApart
#AthloneTriJuniorClub #iTrainWithAthloneTriClub