London Triathlon 2008

The weekend of 9th and 10th August saw torrential downpours of rain over London’s ExCel Centre, interspersed with the occasional ray of sunshine. Amongst these rays of sunshine, for Kidscape at least, were our wonderful six triathletes undertaking the London Triathlon, and raising important funds for anti-bullying projects.

The rain couldn’t dampen the spirits of the hundreds of triathletes clad in wetsuits with their bikes in tow, eager to begin racing. Taking part in this challenging swim, cycle and run were Elliot Gould, David Harris, Nathan Jones, Manuel Klein, Gary MacKay, Jorge Morley-Smith, and two runners who unfortunately had to pull out due to injury (but Kidscape thanks them for all their efforts with training).

With great thanks for all their hard work, training, enthusiasm, and fantastic fundraising, Kidscape has raised over £3,100 from this event as it currently stands. All the triathletes agree it was a rewarding experience, and here are some of the ‘inside stories’ to entering the London Triathlon with Kidscape, and why they chose to support us - if you are inspired by their experiences, find out how you can enter the 2009 London Triathlon.

"I had a fantastic day. This was my first Olympic distance Triathlon and I hadn’t had much chance to train so I was very worried that I might not complete it. The swim was er... interesting. I had only trained in a pool and was amazed how different it was swimming in open (and totally opaque!) water. I thoroughly enjoyed the bike leg but perhaps I was having too much fun because my run was more of a plod! The sense of achievement in finishing the event was great and I was smiling for days. My finishing time was just over the 3 hour mark which leaves me with a nice, easy target for next year!!!
If you’re dithering over whether you want to sign up for next year then do it, and do it for Kidscape, you won’t regret it."
- Nathan Jones

“I thoroughly enjoyed taking up one of the Kidscape places in the London Triathlon. Everything was made really easy for me and I was delighted to be able to raise some funds for such a deserving cause.”
- David Harris

”I wanted to take part in the London Triathlon for Kidscape because I believe strongly that child welfare is one of the most important issues affecting our society today. The work that Kidscape does supporting children and teenagers who have been through bullying and abuse is massively important in helping to develop happy and constructive adults lives.

The Triathlon appealed because, having missed out on the London Marathon, I still wanted to try my hand at fundraising for a major sporting challenge. It was a fantastic experience - the training was varied, and it made me get back into swimming (which I hadn't done since school!) I also cycled to work so I could fit that part of training around my normal routine.

The Triathlon itself was loads of fun. Although a bit daunting for a first-timer, there were actually plenty of people there to help out with where to put your kit and where to go at each time.”
- Jorge Morley-Smith

Kidscape wants to offer a huge congratulations to our triathletes for swimming, cycling, and running with such determination, and for greatly supporting Kidscape in the process. If you would like to support an individual for completing such a feat, please follow the links to their justgiving pages below.

Please follow the links below to support our triathletes:
Elliot Gould: www.justgiving.com/elliotgould30
Nathan Jones: www.justgiving.com/nathanjones1
Gary MacKay: www.justgiving.com/trigary
Jorge Morley-Smith: www.justgiving.com/jorgemorleysmith-2008triathlon

Get details on how to enter the 2009 London Triathlon.

...helping to prevent bullying and child abuse 1985 - 2008

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London Triathlon 2008