Champions Crowned | Weekend Review 31 August – 1 September

It was a busy weekend on the multisport racing scene with multiple major championships taking place in Scotland and other parts of the globe.

Paris Paralympic Games

Paris was calling for PTVI athlete Alison Peasgood and her guide Brooke Gilles, as they stepped on the start line at the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games together.

This was Peasgood’s third showing at the Paralympic Games, and the lead-up had been anything but plain sailing, if not somewhat remarkable. In just over six months, she went from having her baby boy, Logan, to getting in the best shape possible before diving into the Seine river in Paris.

The two of them together produced a great performance, putting themselves right within the mix of the event and coming close to a podium spot. In the end, they settled for fourth, and Peasgood expressed her delight at simply making it to the event: “After giving birth 13 months ago to the most amazing wee boy, I knew the task ahead would be hard. So to be back competing with the best in the world at arguably one of the hardest sports is pretty cool.

Having to race early to secure a slot made it feel even harder, but if you don’t take a chance, you’ll never know what you can achieve. I hope it’s shown not just female athletes but all women that you can be a mum and still achieve your goals; your little ones will just be along for the ride.”

Full results can be found here.

Gdnask Fisu World University Triathlon Championships

Both Hamish Reilly and Jack Kennedy headed out to Gdańsk for the 2024 World University Triathlon Championships and were on a packed start line of over 75 men who were all ready to race.

Reilly had a well-rounded race on the day, coming out of the water at the front end before hopping onto the bike and making the front bike pack. In the end, it would come down to who had the fastest legs on the day, and with a 15:56 5km run split, Reilly settled for 18th position.

Kennedy of the National Triathlon Centre represented Ireland and had been training in Font Romeu for the last two weeks in anticipation of the race. He finished in 65th position.

Full results can be found here.

Europe Triathlon Cup, Istanbul

The next round of Europe Cup racing took place in Istanbul, and Cameron Main was our Scottish representative in the race.

Having put together solid swim and bike legs and finding himself in the front bike pack alongside fellow GB athletes Harry Leleu and Ben Dijkstra, he was looking good for a top finishing position.

Main started the run well, putting himself in the best possible position to contend for a medal, but the pace eventually proved too much, and he dropped off at the halfway point from the pace at the front. He still held his form well throughout the rest of the run to finish in 11th position overall.

Full results can be found here.

School Games

The School Games National Finals took place at the weekend with podium delight coming our way from the athletes.

Rory Treharne and Israel Noble both had top performances on the day of racing in the individual event, coming second and third respectively. In the team event, Noble was also part of the wildcard team that finished second overall.

Full report will be available here once published.

Scottish National Standard Distance Championships

The next Scottish Championship race of the season took place on Sunday, 1 September, with athletes coming from all over Scotland to compete in the Scottish National Standard Distance Triathlon Championships.

The event was hosted by Fleet Fleet Triathletes, and our Scottish champions crowned on the day were Rory Strachan in the Open category race and Miriam Gilbride in the women’s event.

The full race report can be found here.

Full results are available here.

Haddington Sprint Triathlon and Duathlon

The Haddington Sprint Triathlon and Duathlon took place at the weekend, hosted by East Lothian Triathlon Club.

The race took place in and around Aubigny Sports Centre, where entrants swam a 750m pool-based swim, completed a 19km single-loop country road bike section, and finished with a single-loop 5km run, again on country roads.

There was a terrific turnout with athletes from all over Scotland racing. In the Open Sprint Triathlon event, James Burnett claimed the victory, with Isla Cubitt claiming the women’s race.

In the Sprint Duathlon, Leahn Parry won the open category race, and Nicola Dawson won the female event.

Full results can be found here.

Lochore Off-Road Triathlon Festival

Scurry Events put together another perfect multisport festival for athletes of all abilities.

There was an array of events the participants had the choice of entering, and the day met everyone’s needs. The bike section tested the most experienced riders, but everyone managed to get around the course safely.

In the full distance triathlon, Stephen Clark stormed it and took the overall win in the Open category, while Megan Mowbray led the females, taking the tape with a significant margin of over 10 minutes to the rest of the field.

Full results from all the races can be found here.