Caley proud to have been in Isle of Man side
Former Millfield pupil Niall Caley was selected to represent Team Isle of Man at the Commonwealth Games last Friday.
Caley, who resides in West Lydford, currently studies economics and mathematics at the University of Bath and was selected for the Games in January following a successful qualification period last year.
In preparation for the games, Caley teamed up with his Millfield triathlon coach Christian Brown and made use of the school’s world-class facilities alongside training at Vobster Quay and the Odd Down cycle path.
The Elite Men’s race took place at Sutton Park on Friday and was contested as a straight final over a sprint distance consisting of a 750m swim, 20km bike and 5km run. Competitors included some of the biggest names in the sport and Caley began the race ranked 43rd out of 48. A solid swim of 8mins 56 saw him exit the water in a large group in 22nd. Following a successful transition out of his wet-suit and onto the bike meant he just missed the main chase pack of around 18 athletes. Despite this, Caley worked hard with a smaller group for the four laps of the closed road circuit to complete the cycle in 27:36, averaging speeds of around 43kph.
The run course proved tough and hilly and consisted of two laps through Sutton Park, which was lined with thousands of spectators cheering every athlete on. Caley completed the run in 16:13 and crossed the line on the blue carpet in a fantastic 20th in a time of 54 minutes exactly – he finished just over three minutes behind winner Alex Yee.
In the women’s race, former Millfield pupil Erica Hawley was 16th for Team Bermuda.