OVER 200 senior athletes and some 80 juniors braved stormy conditions for the National Duathlon Championships on Sunday morning in Lees Road Sports Park, Ennis.
The race attracted a top quality field but it was Killian Heery from Monaghan for the men and Heather Foley from Co. Down for the women who came out on top. Heery took the lead during the 27km bike section and held on during the final 4km run to finish in a time of 1:24:31. Piranha TC member Richard Doyle, living in Dublin came home in second, thanks to blistering run splits while 3rd place was claimed by Sandymount man Peter Kern, just 5 seconds back.
In the women’s race Heather Foley, a former Commonwealth Games representative in triathlon took the lead during the windy bike section and ran well to win in a time of 1:33:00. Limerick athlete Carolyn Hayes put in a strong all-round performance to finish 2nd, less than a minute back in 1:33:46 with Rachel Clancy 3rd in 1:37:36.
“The youth and junior races added a real family friendly festival atmosphere to proceedings and there were some great performances here also. Ennis Triathlon Club did a brilliant job hosting the Championships and everyone seemed to enjoy the race despite the tough racing conditions.” Commented Scott Graham, Triathlon Ireland Media.
Image Credit: Oisin McHigh/TI Media
