17 October 2006

There were three NZ Army competitors in the 2006 Triathlon Age Group World Championship, held in Lausanne, Switzerland, in early September: Captain Shanon Stallard, of Northern Region Recruiting, and 2nd Canterbury (Nelson Marlborough West Coast) Battalion Group’s Lieutenant Kathryn Lester and Private Warwick Creasy.

The age group race comprised a 1500m swim, a 40km bike, and a 10km run. With a time of two hours, 11 minutes and 28 seconds, CAPT Stallard achieved 10th place in the 25- to 29-year-old men age group category; LT Lester came 17th in the 20- to 24-year-old women, in 2:34:41;20 and PTE Creasy came 18th in the 20- to 24-year-old men, in 2:15:35.

The NZ Army competitors were among the over 100 Kiwis amongst the 1,600 age group competitors from 61 countries. The Swiss skies turned on perfect racing conditions for the competitors, with overcast skies and temperatures in the low-20s.

Exceeding my Goal

This was my first world tri champs and, with 117 starters in my race, in the preceding days I started thinking my goal of a top-20 finish was asking too much.

But not only did I achieve my goal – I went one better. Running home to finish in a top-10 placing was wicked. I’m really happy with the 10th placing and was not far behind the winner; the top 10 all finishing within 3min, and 4th to 10th within a minute – that’s close for a 2hr 10min race.

I had an average 1500m swim; the lake was quite choppy. The start, with 117 guys fighting for space, was like a washing machine. I had a poor first 300m and fell back from the leaders fast, but I managed to steady myself and pass some swimmers in the final 500m. I came out of the water in 56th place.

The 40k cycle went well. I was lucky not to crash twice on the first lap. I pushed it when I was going down the steep hills: I hit a couple of the tight corners too fast and actually slid around them, yet somehow managed to stay upright. God gave me balance!

On one of them I heard the guy following me crash hard into the barriers. I paced myself well on the cycle and was cycling strong on the hills, both up and down. I went into the run around 29th place. This is where the real fun began; I had a blinder of a run. It was so great to90have both of my older brothers, Duane and Jaron, there to cheer me on and giving me updates of what placing I was: 22; 17; then 13 – GO GO GO! My younger brothers Regan and Trent were watching the live internet updates in New Zealand and texting Jaron my placing, who was yelling it to me – technology is amazing.

I was feeling really good on the run, and knowing that I was in the top-20 really got me excited. I had done it, “Go further”, I was thinking, “get top 10” – and I did. Although I didn’t know I was 10th until after the finish and it came down to a sprint against a British athlete.

With a kilometre to go, I could see him 20 minutes ahead and he was running fast; I really pushed it and caught him with 200m to go. I kicked past him but he sat on my heels. Someone yelled out, “Go GB, don’t let a Kiwi beat you”. That help stir me on and, with 60m to go, I dropped him. I must have run the last kilometre in under three minutes. I was over the moon when I finished – all the training and sacrifices had been worth it.

I am now training for summer racing. The New Zealand Cup summer triathlon series starts in New Plymouth in November, with the Half Ironman Champs in Tauranga in January and the Tri Champs in Wellington in April. Next year’s Age Group World Champs are on 30 August in Hamburg, Germany – this time my goal will be to win!

Thanks to the Army Singapore Fund, TSB Bank and the O2Project Bike Shop for your support. I would also like to say a big thanks to all those who have supported me with words of encouragement, including your emails – they were much appreciated.

Sacrifices worth It

I am a lieutenant in the Territorial Force and a sports physiotherapist in Christchurch. I also competed in Lausanne, Switzerland at the World Triathlon Championships.

With a background in running, two years ago I decided to try one of the Contours Women’s triathlons.
After enjoying it, I decided to set my next challenge: a Half Ironman, which I completed last year. It was my first competitive triathlon; I won my age group and came third overall.

I was selected for the New Zealand team this year, after returning early from the Annual Field Exercise to race in Timaru. I suddenly found myself preparing to go up against the world's best in my age group – with only one Olympic distance race under my belt, it was a slightly scary challenge!

So, after a long, cold winter of training I set off for my first European experience. Arriving a week before the race gave us a chance to learn and memorise the course, and take in the fantastic atmosphere and hype associated with this type of event. Despite nerves and a badly timed chest infection, my race went well.

I survived the swim (always a relief for me) and made up most of my places on the bike (where my Port Hills training definitely paid off). The four-lap run course made the crowd support superb and I ended up finishing 17th out of the 77 athletes in my age group.

I never thought I would have the opportunity to represent New Zealand in anything; let alone triathlon. Therefore, it was a huge honour, and it made all the sacrifices worth it, when I stood on that start pontoon with the Silver Fern on my race suit.

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