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Strong currents and a temperature of 35 degrees faced Guernsey triathlete Andrea Nightingale at the Age Group World Championship for Olympic distance triathlon in Cozumel in Mexico.
The 55-year-old was selected to represent Great Britain twice in a month in different sports. She went to the championship in Mexico just two weeks after narrowly missing out on a podium finish at the 20km time trial race at the Age Group World Championships in Perth. In Mexico, she was the fifth Briton home, an improvement on last year’s 12th, and came 22nd overall in the 55 – 59 year old age group beating her 2015 final placing of 49th.
The Olympic distance triathlon involves a one-mile swim, a 25-mile bike ride and a six-mile run. The conditions saw many competitors fail to complete the course and there was huge national coverage of two-time Olympic gold medallist Alistair Brownlee helping his younger brother Jonny over the line before he collapsed with heat stroke.
‘I was absolutely chuffed to bits just to complete the course given the conditions. We had been warned prior to the event that the swim was to be shortened by 250m due to the strong current that had arrived and that it was obviously going to favour the strong swimmers. They weren't wrong and my swim was about 12 minutes slower than my usual time and was a complete nightmare,’ she said.
‘The bike was awesome and I could have gone quicker but at the back of my mind was the advice we had been given to hold back and ensure we had enough energy for the run. It was the easiest 25 miles I have ridden and I was the third fastest in my age group by a matter of seconds and I beat the overall winner on the bike which was a great achievement.
‘The run that I was so worried about was actually ok, I was only six minutes off my normal time, and I didn't stop at any time unlike so many others and we reckon it was at least 35 degrees by that time, pure sun and with absolutely no wind.’
She finished in two hours and 55 minutes.
‘Every time I finish a race it seems to be the hardest I have done and this was no exception. The achievement at the end is what drives me to do these events,’ said the mother of two who was sponsored by Ravenscroft.
‘I hope I made Ravenscroft, Paul from Tri-Fitness, Guernsey and everyone who has helped and supported me proud.
Andrea spent a week in Mexico recovering but still trained every day for 90 minutes.
‘It’s hard to get out of the habit and I don’t want to stop here. If achievable, I’d like to be able to complete a third consecutive triathlon world championship which would be in Rotterdam next year and aim for a top 15 finish as well as compete in two national championships at the Tour of Cambridgeshire which would give me a chance of doing the double at the World Championships in Albi France.
Katy Sandrey, group head of marketing & PR Ravenscroft, said Andrea’s attitude and commitment was hard to describe.
‘Andrea has proved that anything is possible. The coverage of Alistair Brownlee collapsing as he crossed the finish line shows just how tough it was and so Andrea should be incredibly proud of what she has achieved. Ravenscroft’s support may have made it easier for her to represent Team GB twice in a month but it’s her sheer determination that secured that selection and helped her cross the finish line in such impressive times,’ she said.
