Around 50 children took part in a new Junior Triathlon event on Sunday (July 27th) organised to raise funds for The Children’s Centre, and to encourage youngsters to try the sport for the first time. The event, sponsored by Integrated Capabilities Ltd, was held in Ramsey with youngsters aged from eight up to 14 years old taking part.
The Junior Triathlon began at Northern Swimming Pool, followed by a bike ride on the wide Ramsey Promenade footpath on a marked out 700metre circuit, and then finished with a run on 550metre course on the field around Ramsey Rugby Club. There were competitions in four age groups and each child was asked to wear a particular coloured tee-shirt to denote which group they were in. Children then got to keep the tee-shirts as a memento, and everyone who took part was also presented with a medal.
Lisa Motley, Endurance Events Fundraiser at The Children’s Centre, said that funds were still coming in but the final fundraising total was expected to exceed ?2,500. All funds raised will go to The Children’s Centre’s charitable projects across the Island. She added:
“We were really pleased with the response to the event, and all of the children had a great day with many of them attempting a triathlon for the first time. The emphasis was on fun and taking part to encourage children to have a go at a sport they may not have thought of doing before. So we didn’t award any prizes for winners, and instead gave medals to everyone who took part. The feedback we had was that many children welcomed this format so they didn’t worry about what position they finished and could simply enjoy the experience. We must say a big thank you to Integrated Capabilities Ltd for sponsoring the event, everyone who took part, all of the volunteers who helped out on the day, and to June Collister from Manx Tri Club for helping to organise the event.”
Lisa also thanked Manx Timing Solutions for providing results for the event for any children who wanted to know their times. Full timings can be found at www.manxtimingsolutions.com
The event was run under British Triathlon Federation (BTF) rules and the distances for each swim, bike and run section varied for each age group. All distances were the maximum allowed by the BTF and were as follows:
8 years: Swim – 50metres (2 lengths); Cycle – 700metres (1 lap); Run – 550metres (1 lap)
9 to 10 years: Swim – 150metres (6 lengths); Cycle – 3.5kms (5 laps); Run – 1.1kms (2 laps)
11 to 12 years: Swim – 200metres (8 lengths); Cycle – 4.9kms (7 laps); Run – 1.65kms (3 laps)
13 to 14 years: Swim – 300metres (12 lengths); Cycle – 6.3kms (9 laps); Run – 2.2kms (4 laps)
Four time Ironman World Champion Chrissie Wellington MBE, and Team Isle of Man Commonwealth Games triathlete Andrew Nash, both spoke in support of the new event when it was announced earlier this summer. They both commented that the Junior Triathlon would be a great opportunity to encourage more children to take up the sport.
For information about more exciting fundraising events being organised by The Children’s Centre go to www.thechildrenscentre.org.im/events/.
