Triathlete triumphs in Japan
A Palmerston North triathlete is heading home in triumph after a big win in Japan.
David Martin won the 30th Sagishima Triathlon at Mihara City, in the Hiroshima Prefecture, last weekend, improving on his second place performance at the event last year.
About 300 Japanese athletes, alongside foreign guest athletes such as Martin, compete in the event each year.
Martin is in his final semester at Massey University, working towards a bachelor in business and is part of the university’s Academy of Sport scholarship programme.
The programme aims to support elite athletes, such as Martin, who won two medals at the 2018 International Triathlon Union World Championships in Australia.
Martin came second in the sprint distance event and third in the standard distance event, standing out from the crowd of 5000 of the world’s best triathletes.
He has also been training in Europe this year and recently competed in his first World Cup event in Hungary.
Palmerston North City Council international relations manager Toni Grace said the Sagishima Triathlon was one of many growing connections between the city and Mihara, and the council was delighted by Martin’s win.
Martin’s efforts were sponsored by the Hiroshima New Zealand Friendship Society.
Earlier this year, a delegation from Mihara visited Palmerston North as part of an arrangement between the two cities, leading to Martin’s invitation to the Sagishima Triathlon.