Championships medals and World Championship qualification attracts over a thousand athletes to the 2017 Ripon Triathlon

Edward Castro will surely be wanting to race in Yorkshire again after his latest victory on Saturday in the Triathlon England National Standard Distance Championships at Ripon. For Castro, the British Triathlon Age Group Athlete of the Year in 2015, it marks a British and English Championship double, having also won the Standard Distance event at the Columbia Threadneedle World Triathlon Leeds in June.

The race, organised Freebird Events in conjunction with NYP Tri marks the halfway mark in the 2017 Triathlon England Championship schedule, with the Middle Distance, Club Relays and Duathlon still to come in what has already been a busy season.

Always a fine swimmer, Edward once again set the pace over the opening 1.5km lake swim in a very swift 18:06. Adding the second fastest bike split of the race set him up for a great day, before holding his lead over the closing 10km to set the fastest time overall and win the 25-29 division. By the finish he had built a buffer of over a minute on Sam Wade (25-29), who in turn was a minute clear of Jacob Shannon (20-24). After the race, Edward commented, “Really enjoyed the England Standard distance championships today. Really tough field but managed to hold on on the run!”

The fastest female overall was Michelle Willcocks (30-34). Michelle adds the English Championship over the Standard Distance to her European Gold over the Sprint distance earned just a week previously in Dusseldof, Germany. Michelle had to work hard for win, catching Samantha Rose (25-29) on the run, after the Team Torq athlete had set the fastest times for both the swim and cycle disciplines. Like Edward Castro, Samantha matched her British Championship results from Leeds with an Age-Group Gold and second fastest overall.  Third fastest overall – and winner of the 35-39 category – was Becky Schofield (35-39).

As well as Triathlon England Championship medals; the Ripon Triathlon was also a qualifier for the ITU World Championships in Rotterdam later this year. Qualification status for athletes will be updated on the link provided below, shortly.

The next Triathlon England Championship event of the season is just three weeks away, the Middle Distance Championship event will be held at the Owler Triathlon in Kent, organised by Tri Spirit Events, Entries are still available HERE (http://www.trispiritevents.com/events/the-owler-triathlons/)

Ripon Standard Distance Triathlon – Saturday 1^st July 2017
Triathlon England National Standard Distance Triathlon Championships
1.5km / 40km / 10km

Men

1^st - Edward Castro – 1:55:49
2^nd – Sam Wade (Team Pedalcover) – 1:57:03
3^rd – Jacob Shannon (Leeds Triathlon Centre / Triology) – 1:58:13

Women

1^st – Michelle Willcocks – 2:10:06
2^nd – Samantha Rose (Team Torq) – 2:11:11
3^rd – Becky Schofield (Tri-Anglia) – 2:12:00

Race results: Visit here

Qualification status (will appear shortly): Visit here