Close racing at Lochore Meadows in first aquathlon for youth and junior athletes

The first of the two aquathlon events in this year’s British Triathlon Super Series took place at Lochore Meadows in Scotland where youth and junior athletes showcased their swim and run skills.

For each athlete, the best two results from the three races on the day counted and were used to calculate the final event standings, making for an exciting day of racing with the final result not known until the points were calculated at the end of the final race.

Youth A Boys 

With three wins out of three on the day for Rory Byrant, there was no doubt as to where the maximum Super Series points were heading in the Youth A Boys category.

The first race for the Youth A Boys was an 800m swim and 1km run with Bryant claiming his first victory of the day, passing George Turner who had led out of the swim, and holding off the challenge of the fast-running Brandon Pye, who finished second ahead of Turner.

The second race over a 500m swim and 1.5km run followed a similar pattern, with Turner again leading after the swim. Bryant however then took control of the run to secure the victory with another second-place finish for Pye.

In the third and final race, the athletes raced over a 300m swim and 2km run. Already having taken two wins out of two, Bryant had already secured the maximum British Super Series points but there was still a lot to play for further down the field.

The overall victory in the third was again went to Bryant with Mathys Bocquet finishing one second behind and Alex Boyer in third.

Pye’s two second places saw him end the day second in the event standings, with Luke Jolmes third overall following  third and fourth place finishes.

Youth A Girls

In race one, the same distances of the Youth A Boys, Jessica Heeps had a 15 second lead out of the swim and managed to maintain this lead all the way to the finish line. Rebecca Van Aardt was second with Tabitha Robson in third.

In the second race the order was maintained with Heeps again leading out of the swim and holding on by 16 seconds. In race three, it was Van Aardt who was the stronger over the 2km run, with Helena Coy two seconds behind in second, and Heeps in 3rd.

Heeps took maximum British Super Series points, with Van Aardt in second and Robson in third.

Youth B / Junior Boys

In the combined Youth B and Junior Boys races, Youth B athlete Harry Courtney led out of the swim ahead of junior Callum Stedman. Courtney held on to begin his day with victory, with Stedman remaining in second over the first race of an 800m swim and 1km run.

Junior athlete Charlie Harding – who will represent England at the Commonwealth Games as Oscar Kelly’s guide in PTVI paratriathlon – came through the field to finish third having come out of the water in ninth.

Onto the second race, a 500m swim and 2km run, it was junior athlete Struan Bennet who exited first out of water and, despite Llanelli Youth B winner Deri McCluskey running through the field, it was Bennet who held on with Harding in third.

With three points covering the top five athletes, there was everything to play for going into the third and final race consisting of a 300m swim and 3km run.

Exiting the swim, only five seconds separated the top three and it was Bennet and Harding who got a gap on the rest of the field as they started the third lap on the run. Bennet made a final surge in the final 100m to secure the race win two seconds ahead of Harding in second and McCluskey in third.

Bennet claimed maximum points in the junior rankings ahead of Harding in second and Stedman in third. Courtney and McCluskey were both tied in first in the Youth B standings with Josh Geary third.

Youth B / Junior Girls

In the first race of the combined Youth B and Junior Girls races, junior Olivia Logan led out of the swim and held on by one second from a fast-chasing Millie Breese and newly-crowned world junior cross triathlon champion Isla Hedley.

Into the second race and a strong swim saw Hedley exit the water in the lead group and, with the fastest run, held off Breese in second and Eve Whitaker in third. As the run got longer Hedley was in control and the second and third from race two reversed with Whitaker ahead of Breese.

In the Youth B rankings standings, Hedley ended the day in first, Breese second and Whitaker in third. In the junior category, Annabel Wright was first, with Jess Sails in second and Anna McQueen third.

What’s next in the British Triathlon Super Series?

The second of the two aquathlon events will take place in southern England at the private grounds of Bowood House and Gardens on Saturday (25 June). With both aquathlon events carrying equal points, athletes compete at either Lochore or Bowood, depending on where they are based.

Then attentions turn to the British Paratriathlon Championships in the Paratri Super Series on Saturday 16 July at Eton Dorney, before youth and junior athletes join the senior athletes at Mallory Park for a day of racing on Monday 25 July.

Copy of the Lochore event provided by Triathlon Scotland. Read their weekend round-up here.