THE 2018 Tartu ETU Triathlon European Championships in Estonia was the focus for Warwickshire’s Do3 squad at the weekend.
The team, coached by Dave Knight, was represented at the European finals by age group competitors Anita Howe and Toni Senior who competed for Great Britain at the race.
Howe, from Coventry, took to the podium with a silver for her age group having been pipped to a gold medal by just two seconds. She completed the 1,500m swim in 22.35, the 40km bike in 1:04 and the 10km run in 39:13.
Senior finished top ten in her age group and pulled in a spectacular swim which resulted in her being fifth out of the water.
Howe said of her efforts: “The atmosphere and camaraderie at the European Championships was electric and I’m delighted to have returned home having made my mark on the European finals.
“Without doubt my thanks go to Dave Knight who has helped push me and of course to those close to me who have put up with early-morning starts and some rather ruthless training schedules that have sapped my social life!
“Being second in my age group amongst such a strong field is just amazing and I’m still revelling in the whole experience.”
In the UK, Elo Du Luart, Do3’s professional athlete, was in peak form and finished the Bosworth Triathlon as both the winning female and fourth overall.
Racing at standard distance 1,500m swim, 42km bike and 11km run, she crossed the finish line in 2:13:32 – a full ten minutes before the next female competitor.
Marc Bozdogan and GB age-grouper Jonathan Ward took part in the sprint triathlon at Bosworth.
Raced over a distance of 750m swim, 21km bike and 5km run, Ward completed the distance in 1:11:00 and was first in his age group and fifth overall, with Bozdogan crossing the line in 1:24:36 and third in his age group.
The longstanding good weather meant the swim section was without a wetsuit and competitors were again faced with soaring temperatures.
Alison Robbins, who is celebrating a year with Do3, was in good form at Droitwich Triathlon and took six minutes, 35 seconds off her 2017 time to finish the sprint distance in 1:20:14.
At the Ashby Triathlon, Elaine Sherwin’s relay team was second overall at sprint distance with a time of 01:06:42.
