On Saturday 11th June I raced at the National Aquathlon Championships in Leeds. The race was enjoyable, especially getting to swim the same course as the elite ITU racers would do on the Sunday. However, I have to say the event organisation was very poor. Receiving a phone call at 9.30pm telling me I had been put in the wrong wave and been given the wrong colour swim hat is not what you want on the night before your key race of the season.

Anyway, the race was a 750m swim followed by a 5km hilly run. Having won my age group last year I was hoping to medal again but I knew this would be harder than last year as the competition would be much better being as the race was in Leeds and running alongside the ITU world cup race. I wasn’t wrong. The girl that won is an elite athlete from New Zealand who won the U23 aquathlon champs in 2013 and has raced at a number of ITU races. I was just pleased to be on the same results page as her! Anyway, having been in bronze medal position for most of the race, I was overtaken in the last quarter of the race and finished 4th in my age group and 24th overall out of 75 women. I am disappointed to have just missed out on a age group medal but also hopeful that I could have done a bit better if I hadn’t been injured leading up to the race.