Triathlon Scotland
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The Mazda Blenheim Triathlon, 7th June 2009
David McNamee (21, Irvine) put the mechanical disappointments
of the Strathclyde Super Series behind him, pushing for
the line and a 4th place finish in the Elite Triathlon
event in Blenheim today.
The race was won by Stuart Hayes, the 2007 Corus Elite
series winner, followed by Youth Olympic Champion, Johnny
Brownlee, in 2nd place. Both finished less than a second
ahead than Aaron Harris & McNamee who sprinted for the
line together.
"This was a very impressive performance from David," said
Scotland assistant coach, Blair Cartmell. "He has shown
today that he can compete with some of the best young
under 23 performers. He should draw huge confidence from
this result."
In the shorter youth event, over 400m Swim / 10km Bike
/ 2.5km Run, Scottish Performance Squad athletes Will
Johnston (16, Edinburgh) and Cameron Milne (16, Kinross)
broke away from the pack after the swim and worked well
together on the bike ride, forging a substantial lead
in difficult cold and wet conditions. The boys were pushed
hard on the run by chasing competitors, but the hard work
on the bike was sufficient to hold the lead for another
Scotland win; Gold - Will Johnston; Silver - Cameron Milne.
"The collaboration on the bike ride was excellent and
was a strategy that won them the race. The conditions
weren't easy today, with heavy rain before the race start
and a cold wind" said Blair.
Andrew Christie performed strongly to achieve 7th in the
same race.
Seven further Scottish Performance Squad members took
part in the Blenheim race, many challenging themselves
to take the step up to the next level of competition,
gaining experience with every event.
2XU are an official sponsor to Triathlon Scotland and
are delighted to see the team performing so well, and
wish them continued success throughout 2009.
Scots Dominate Young Etonian Podium
Triathlonscotland's young, male performance squad athletes
swept the board at the Eton Youth Triathlon (Sunday 24th
May 2009), in an intense battle which carried, not only
today's youth honours, but also the promise of selection
to the European Youth Relay team, traveling on 21st June
to Italy to compete in GB colours.
Andrew Hood (17, Cupar) took victory, in bank holiday
sunshine, over the Super Sprint course, which features
a 400m swim, followed by a 10k bike and finally a 2.5k
run. Cameron Milne (16, Kinross) finished a close second,
followed by Peter Anderson (17, Laurencekirk), Hood's
Fleet Feet club mate, in third. Just 30 seconds separated
the top three, who were followed home by a disappointed
Will Johnston, who took Silver in the British Youth Duathlon
earlier this month and today finished 4th.
"The guys put in a tremendous team performance today,
riding well as a squad on the bike. Off the bike the first
group made their advantage work to hold podium positions
over the run, where Will Johnston put in a strong performance,"
reported a thrilled Blair Cartmell, Assistant Coach.
Final selections have not yet been announced, but these
Scottish boys seem set to dominate the British European
Youth Relay squad. These young athletes aspire to form
the core of Scotland's 2014 Commonwealth squad. Three
selections to the relay squad this summer would be a strong
indicator of performances ahead of expectation.
Duncan McArthur (16, Striling) and Jenny McDougall (17,
Edinburgh) also put in strong performances at the Eton
event, with Duncan finishing 10th and Jenny just outside
the girls' top 10.
David MacNamee competes later today in a French Grand
Prix event, where he will seek to put the equipment problems
of last week's British Super Series event behind him.
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