Race day

Race day
Originally uploaded by garyrichardjones.

Well a hugely emotional day, with highs and lows but one we will all remember forever.

Tim was absolutely fantastic, his grit and determination to was not bettered by anyone in the field. Bearing in mind he did not get the all clear to race until Wednesday, the performance he put in was just incredible. Tim would like to say a big thanks to Marcel in particular, because despite the arm injury he was still able to put in a 22 min swim.

Scott had a good race, very solid on the swim, being only 90 secs down on the lead group and led the Channel Island contingent out of the swim. He worked hard on the bike in a group of four, but by the time he got out on the run, there was not much left in the tank. This wasn't surprising as Scott had been laid low by a virus over the last couple of weeks, which had impacted upon his final preparations.

Paul's race didnt go as well as he had hoped. Dropped water bottles contributed to cramping at the end of the bike and during run. However, the major factor was a period of lost training due to a hamstring tear before Christmas, which led to Paul only running 10 times since Christmas, which showed in the run leg. Paul had also been laid low by a virus out on the Gold Coast, which meant he missed the Hobart triathlon.

As for me, well it was fantastic honour and privilege to be out here with the guys. They've been a credit to themselves and the Jersey Triathlon Club and have been fantastic ambassadors for both the Island and the sport of triathlon. We've learnt loads of lessons which we will need to apply quickly if we are going to maintain our record in the NatWest Island Games, and we'll be doing a full debrief when we get back.

Finally, let's end by congratulating Guernsey's Sam Herrdige and Ian Le Pelley for two outstanding performances. Sam came out of the water with the elite group, and smashed 3 mins off her personal best. Ian, in effect won the non-elite race, with 18th being the best he could possibly have hoped for.