50 athletes for triathlon in Nadi
Fifty athletes are expected to compete at the Fiji National Triathlon Championships at Wailoaloa, Nadi, tomorrow. The event will see participation of sisters, Sadie and Katie Pattie, Tima and Grace Takape, Angus Pattie (father of Pattie sisters), Daniell Cowley and Petero Manoa.
Athletes from other sports including Fiji Swimming (Tilali Scanlan, Fai Moss and Lucas Nicolaus), Fiji Surfing (sisters, Havana and Ulukilupatea Kurop), Fiji Cycling (Eroni Takape), Judo Fiji (Shanice and Nathalyn Takayawa), Fiji Sailing (Alan Marshall) and Suva Marathon (Ana Cowley and Rinesh Kumar) will take part. Association secretary-general Maryann Moss said: “We’re going to have some fun and interesting competition from all categories, age and gender.”
She said the athletes from the other sporting federations are using the competition to prepare for the Olympic qualifier.
“We postponed our National Championship last December due to the weather for the safety of athletes, officials, audience and general public.”
The event is held at Wailoaloa Beach as organisers and executives are all based in the west and cost effective.
The main event of the day is the triathlon sprint (16yr old+/Open) which requires the athlete to swim 750m, cycle 20km and run 5km.
“Looking at our entries, anyone could take out the championship. We have the young/elite and the Masters categories.
“With the current economic challenges, we are grateful to the Cowley’s, Denarau Surf, Dive N Ski Fiji Ltd, FIJI Water, Coca-Cola Amatil (Fiji) Limited, Port Denarau Marina, Sovereign TRI Series and McDonald’s Fiji for sponsoring our event,” she said.