TWO members of Stroud & District Athletic Club took part in a World Championship Triathlon Qualifier on Sunday at Eton Dorney.

Gwen Kinsey competed in the 40-44 age category and Jack Powis in the juniors.

Normally swimming 400m in triathlon races, this was Jack’s first time racing the swim section over 750m. Competing as part of a wave of athletes up to 30 years old, he was undaunted and came out of the water in the middle of the field.

Jack made good progress catching others during the 20km bike ride which comprised of four laps of the lake (used as the 2012 Olympic rowing venue).

During the final 5km run, Jack continued his good work and improved to a final position of 10th in his age group which was a great result considering he has been plagued with injuries over the last couple of years.

Gwen started in a wave of athletes aged 35-49, and had a solid start, exiting the water in 4th place. She was in the fortunate position of having several other athletes around her during the bike section so they were able to take turns sharing the work on this draft-legal phase.

The pack caught the leaders, and she was particularly pleased with her bike, improving by over two minutes on last year.

A swift transition saw Gwen lead out the run until the halfway point when she was overtaken by ex-Olympian Michelle Dillon making a comeback into age-group triathlon. However, as Michelle was 44-49 years, Gwen secured an age-group victory.

Both Jack and Gwen are racing again on June 3 over the longer Standard distance (1,500m swim, 40km bike, 10km run) at Deva Triathlon in Chester.