dic.08.2006
On Sunday 3 December 2006 the National Triathlon Championship was held for the first time in Tobago as part of an initiative to promote awareness and develop the sport in the sister isle. The swim leg of the event took place at the popular Mt. Irvine Beach and was followed by the bike and run legs, that took place along Shirvan Road, a rolling but challenging course.
The event attracted persons of all ages, from Chelsea Mohammed in the 8 to 9 age group category to Stan Patinos, who at 58 participated in his first triathlon in the Try your First Triathlon category. Tobagonians were well represented in this category, sweeping the top three places : Neil Potts (1st), James London (2nd) and Henson Ottley (3rd). Alison Young was the first placed woman in the category.
The overall winner was Ryan Mendes, who chose to participate in the National Championship though he was still recovering from an arm fracture sustained in October in a mountain bike race in Canada. Mendes led from the start, emerging first from the water after a 22 minute swim. He would go on to finish the race in a time of 2 hours 18 minutes 8 seconds. Former National Triathlon Champion Jason Gooding finished in second place in a time of 2 hours 23 minutes 58 seconds. Ancil Greene was 3rd overall in a time of 2 hours 25 minutes 36 seconds. Veteran triathlete Jacqueline Jodhan was the overall winner for the women finishing in 3 hours 9 minutes 9 seconds.
In the Sprint distances Sebastien Paddington and Sean De Freitas finished in first and second respectively, with Rebecca John as the first place female in this division.
Among the juniors, Akil Baptiste was placed first in the 12 - 13 Age Group (Male) with Mark London, hailing from Tobago, finishing in second place. Léanne Eligon finished first in her age group (10 â?" 11 Female) with Kerlene Taylor-Alexander in second place. Adrielle Mahabir and Chelsea Mohammed placed first in the 14 â?" 15 and 8 â?" 9 age groups respectively.
The Relay event was won by a team from Trinidad : Michael Nyarko (swim), Rajendra Samaroo (bike) and Charles Quincy (run).
Following the event the T&T Triathlon Association thanked the Tobago House Assembly, Mr. Trim the Director of Sport and Ms. Tracy Davidson, the Assistant Secretary of Youth Affairs and Sport, for the support and sponsorship of the event, and Mrs. John, the Manager of Tourism.
The Ministry of Sport and Youth Affairs as well as Crystal Waters and BG came in for commendation for their co-sponsorship of the event as did the Tobago Fire Services who assisted on the day of the event.
The award ceremony for Tobago will take place on 18th December 2006 at the VIP Lounge in Shaw Park, Tobago. The award ceremony in Trinidad will take on 20th December at a venue to be announced.