Age no barrier to tri success
THE youngest girl in the field has won the female 16-19 girls category at the ITU World Triathlon Age Group Championships.
Noosa-based Chloe McLellan finished the 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run sprint format on the Southport Broadwater yesterday in a time of 1 hour 4 minutes and 37 seconds.
No one was more shocked than the 15-year-old.
“The swim is not my best leg but I guess I had an all-right swim,” McLellan said.
“I honesty thought I was in the second pack on the bike and I didn’t know I was in the lead the whole way. I thought I was coming 10th or something.
“It is pretty cool to know (that I actually won).
“On the bike we all worked in the pack really well and then on the run I just gave it all I had.
“I didn’t realise I was in the lead until they put the banner across the line (and I ran through it).
“I do know most of the girls. But I thought there was another massive pack in front of us.”
Australia took centre stage in the race, with Canberra’s Elle Hoitink (1:05.11) and Lauren Kerwick (1:06.22, Orange, NSW) finishing second and third respectively.
McLellan trains at Race Pace in Noosa under the guidance of Peter and Jacqui McKenzie, the father and sister of 2013 Ironman World Championship runner-up Luke McKenzie.
McLellan may be young but she has already been racing in triathlons for 11 years.
“I had my first race when I was four. It was the Pink Triathlon at Kawana Pool,” McLellan said.
“Mum (Cheryl) ran next to me on the bike I was that slow. I only started competing seriously like three years ago.
“I did quite a lot of racing last year around the place and interstate but this is my first world thing.
“I’m only 15 so I’m pretty happy. I won the duathlon (on the Gold Coast) to gain automatic selection.”
So what does the future hold for this young superstar? More training of course.
“I’ll have two days off and then get back into training,” McLellan said.