Locals went went well in the European Sprint Championships, age group wins in Bedford

The European Sprint Triathlon Championships were held in Munich last weekend as part of the European Games.

And the three PACTRAC athletes who qualified all performed creditably.

Mark Weathersby finished 17th in his age group, but was only 3 minutes off of a podium spot.

Susie Freeman finished 21st in her age group after a good swim put her in early contention, while Simon Hoppe finished 22nd in his age group and was similarly only 3 minutes away from a top 3 result.

Hoppe was the 3rd Brit home and was looking to add to his collection of medals this year, having already finished in the 3rd team home at the World Sprint Relay Championships in Montreal, before picking up a bronze medal in the National Championships two weeks ago,

A third Championship medal of the campaign proved just a little too elusive, although his rapid swim and bike times put him in early contention.

The event consisted of a 750m swim, a 13-mile bike and a 3.1 mile run. Weathersby finished in 66.32, Hoppe in 68.21 and Freeman in 78.55. Rob Hammond finished 3rd overall in the Bedford Triathlon and first in his age group, while Steve Hope also on his age group.

Chris Northern ventured over to Cork in Ireland to compete in his first Ironman triathlon. He started the day well with a good 2.4 mile sea swim and then consolidated with consistent 112 mile bike and 26.2 mile run legs.

Northern said: “That was amazing. The support of the Irish was incredible - hosing us down on the hottest run I have ever done. I wanted a sub 12 and got 11 hours 47. I am finally an Ironman after 2 years of grit."