The action was massive in Llanelli this weekend (10th – 12th May) with a wide variety of Welsh and British events taking place. There were also some races taking place a bit further afield in Mallorca and Yokohama. Let’s recap on some of the action…
Sospan Charity Swim
The Sospan Charity Swim, organised by Healthy Life Activities, kicked off the schedule on the Friday evening. The event took place at the North Dock offering four different races with varying lengths (750m, 1500m, 2250m, 3000m) making it the perfect event for first time open water swimmers.
Blessed with some lovely weather and sunshine, the event went swimmingly.
Congratulations to the podium finishers in each race and everyone that took part! Results can be found here.
Welsh Junior Race Series
Two stages of our Welsh Junior Race Series also took place in Llanelli this weekend. On Saturday 11th, we had four junior duathlons available to TriStar Start, Tristar 1, TriStar 2 and TriStar 3 athletes, whilst on Sunday 12th, we had our triathlon event open to youth and junior athletes.
Another fantastic event organised by Healthy Life Activities. A fast, flat course for juniors along the Millennium Coastal Park. Offering something for all age groups, these events provided an ideal platform for our junior athletes to either experience their debut in duathlon/triathlon or further develop their skills.
A full race report, alongside results, will be published on our website soon!
Photography - Nic Forbes Photography
British Youth & Junior, Senior and Para Super Series
Also on Saturday, Llanelli hosted, as it has done for many years, the opening round of the domestic elite triathlon season, with the British Triathlon Super Series for youths, juniors, seniors and paratriathletes.
We had 17 athletes from our National Triathlon Performance Centre and 12 from the Academy and NextGen Programmes competing across the various events, with some extremely high level racing throughout the day. Special mentions to the athletes who finished on the podium in their respective categories:
- Katie Rodda (NextGen) – 2nd Senior
- Dom Coy (NextGen & NTPCW) – 3rd Senior
- Deri Mccluskey (NextGen & NTPCW) – 2nd Junior
- Megan Fergusson (NTPCW) – 1st PTS5
Photography - Nic Forbes Photography
Welsh Super Series
On Sunday 12th, Llanelli Sprint Triathlon marked the first stage of the Welsh Triathlon Super Series 2024! The competition was fierce as athletes gathered from all over to compete for an early opportunity to gain vital points for the series.
The race consisted of a 750m swim, a 30km bike and a 5km run, and there were incredible performances across the board. Congratulations to everyone who took part!
A massive thank you to all of the volunteers, technical officials, athletes and spectators who made the event what it was. And especially to Noelwyn and the whole Healthy Life Activities team who organised such a terrific event!
A full race report and results will be published on our website soon!
THE ROC WALES
THE ROC WALES event also took place this weekend in Abersoch, Gwynedd. THE ROC WALES starts with a 1.5km sea swim in Abersoch’s bay before heading off on a 50km undulating bike route into the Snowdon Massif. The race then heads on foot up Wales’ highest mountain along The Watkin Path, 6km of 3,330ft formidable ascent to the summit before heading 6km back down, 50km return cycle, culminating with a 1km run along Abersoch beach before crossing the finish line.
This is a super tough race, congratulations to all athletes that took on the feat! A special mention to the podium finishers in the open category: Tom Bill, Pete Dyson and Dan Elliot. And the podium finishers in the female category: Serena Carter, Chloe Dooley and Sian Harries.
Full results can be found here.
Liam Lloyd at Ironman 70.3 Mallorca
Slightly further afield than Llanelli, Welsh professional athlete Liam Lloyd was in Spain this weekend competing in Ironman 70.3 Alcúdia-Mallorca. This was Liam’s third Ironman Pro Series race this year, after completing Ironman 70.3 Oceanside and Ironman Texas.
Speaking of the Pro Series, Liam was able to pick up significant points in Mallorca after crossing the line in an impressive 16th place. He took to Instagram saying:
“A positive performance after what has been a busy 7 weeks of travel and racing. Always appreciate these moments and being able to do what I enjoy day in day out!”
Congratulations Liam!
Olivia Mathias at World Triathlon Series Yokohama
Even further afield, our Commonwealth Games medalist Olivia Mathias competed in the opening round of the World Triathlon Championship Series (WTCS) in Yokohama, Japan on Saturday.
Olivia put in an impressive performance on the swim-bike, as the lead Brit coming out of the water, slotting straight into the front pack of 18 athletes and being very active throughout the bike leg. Unfortunately, she suffered on the run on this occasion to come home in 40th place. Olivia will go again in the next round of the WTCS in Cagliari in two weeks’ time.
