We’ve got details of the bike route for next year’s Challenge Galway – and it looks like it’ll be a stunner.
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The course sends athletes out of T1 from Oranmore to Clarinbridge Estuary – the easternmost point of Galway Bay – and joins the Wild Atlantic Way, Ireland’s longest defined coastal touring route.
Presenting some of the most breathtaking scenery anywhere in the world, the organisers describe it as a picture postcard of Ireland. Riders can enjoy spectacular scenery through The Burren & Cliffs of Moher UNESCO Global Geopark.
Corkscrew Hill, Ireland
As they climb the switchbacks of ‘Corkscrew Hill’, riders will be rewarded with views over the Burren to the coast returning via a magnificent oceanside section from Doolin through to the beautiful seaport village of Kinvarra.
Challenge Galway will be take place on 24-26 June 2016, featuring a range of distances and formats including full, half, women-only and kids’ races.
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Will you be entering Challenge Galway? Let us know in the comments below!
Hurrah it’s open-water swimming season again! The water’s warming up – slowly – and we think it’s time to winnow out some of this country’s best wild swimming spots.
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So we’ve asked the Kenwood Ladies’ Pond Association, authors of Wild Swimming Walks (Wild Things Publishing, £14.99), to share their favourite country walks with us – each one featuring a recommended wild swim…
>>> 220’s guide to the UK’s best open-water swimming venues
Shepreth to Cambridge, Cambridgeshire
Maps: OS Landranger 154 (Cambridge & Newmarket) or OS Explorer 209 (Cambridge).
A 9.5 mile walk. From Shepreth train station, follow the signposted footpaths through Barrington, Harston, Hasslingfield and then onto Grantchester. The River Cam can be followed into Cambridge. The River Cam is a clear river with a modest current, and offers scope to do a long swim downstream from Grantchester all the way to Newnham.
Farnham to Frensham Great Pond
Map: OS Landranger 186 (Aldershot and Guildford); OS Explorer 145 (Guildford and Farnham); for the Bentley option only, OS Explorer 144 (Basingstoke).
An 8 mile walk from Farnham Station. The main swim is in Frensham Great Pond, and there are also swims in the young River Wey. Follow the North Downs Way along the River Wey, then join the Surrey Cycleway Link before your fist swim in Tilford. You can then follow a track to Frensham Great Pond.
Southease to Newhaven
Map: OS Landranger 198 (Brighton & Lewes); OS Explorer 123 (Eastbourne & Beachy Head). The hamlet of Southease is on Explorer 122, not 123, but is easy to find without the second map.
This is a walk of contrasts, between tranquil Southease, and the industrial present and remains of Newhaven. Follow the South Downs Way signposts eastwards to Itford Hill. Follow the ridge, and descend to the sea. The best place to access fairly deep water at any tide is outside the Newhaven and Seaford Sailing Club.
Manningtree circular
Maps: OS Landranger 168 (Colchester); OS Explorer 184 (Colchester) and 196 (Sudbury, Hadleigh & Dedham Vale).
A beautiful walk through Constable country with several opportunities to enjoy good river swimming in the famous Stour. A particularly good spot is opposite Dedham Mill where the river opens into a pond and there is a small beach. Follow footpaths to Flatford and Dedham, and once you’ve sawm, follow the river back to Manningtree station.
Shillingford to Didcot
Map: OS Landranger 164 (Oxford) or OS Explorer 170 (Abingdon, Wantage & Vale of White Horse).
An easy walk with plenty of opportunities to swim in the River Thames. There are many possible swimming places – the river is quite wide and deep and easy to swim across. Follow the footpath signed for the Thames Path. At Little Wittenham follow the river bank to Day’s Lock and a weir. A cycle track will take you back to Didcot station.
Kirby Cross to Frinton and Walton-on-the-Naze, Essex
Maps: OS Landranger 169 (Ipswich & The Naze); OS Explorer 184 (Colchester, Harwich & Clacton-on-Sea).
A perfect summer’s walk of 10.5 miles with sea swims from sandy beaches. From Kirby Cross station footpaths lead through open countryside, past the village of Great Holland, all the way to the sea. All the way along the shore, the swimming is exceptional with sandy beaches.
Folkestone to Dover, Kent
Maps: OS Landranger 179 (Canterbury & E Kent); OS Explorer 138 (Dover, Folkestone & Hythe).
Starting from Folkestone station, the day starts with swims from shingle coves or sandy beaches and continues with a 9 mile walk over towering cliff tops and past mysterious relics of war. The first swimming opportunity is from Mermaid beach, Mill Point. The second swim is on the other side of Folkestone Harbour at Sunny Sands, a lovely sandy beach.
Chilworth to Guildford, Surrey
Map: OS Landranger 186 (Aldershot & Guildford) or OS Explorer 145 (Guildford & Farnham)
This 8 mile walk crosses heathland dotted with pretty Surrey villages before dropping down to follow the Wey Navigation, where there are many swimming places. From Chilworth station, the route crosses a mixture of wild and rather forbidding heathland, but soon gives way to gentle pastures, small woods and cosy commuter villages. The swimming is good with sandy beaches.
(Images: Margaret Dickinson / Sarah Saunders / R Corney / Liz Valentine)
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Wild Swimming Walks: 28 lake, river and seaside days out by train from London by the Kenwood Ladies Pond Association (Wild Things Publishing, £14.99) is available from all good bookshops and www.wildthingspublishing.com
With just days to go until the 2015 Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research Blenheim Palace Triathlon, Prime Minister David Cameron has sent a personal message to everyone taking part, and voiced his support for the drive to beat blood cancer.
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Prime Minister David Cameron, whose constituency of Witney includes Blenheim Palace, says: “There are few things more distressing than being diagnosed with cancer and, while survival rates are improving, there is so much more to do. My Government will not stop until Britain is the best place in Europe to survive cancer and organisations like Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research play a crucial role in achieving this goal with its compassionate care of patients and cutting-edge research.
“All of us will know someone who has been affected by cancer. This is such an important cause and I want to wish everyone involved in the Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research Blenheim Palace Triathlon the very best of luck. Together, we really can beat blood cancer and help to improve the lives of cancer patients across the UK.”
Scarlett’s Dragons
One group of Oxford fundraisers who will be drawing on Cameron’s message of support are “Scarlett’s Dragons”, a team of 164 parents rallying together on Sunday 14 June in support of 10-year-old Scarlett Clarkson who has leukaemia. The group has already raised £62,500 for Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research.
Scarlett was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia in January 2011 when she was just six years old. Unfortunately her initial chemotherapy treatment was unsuccessful and she relapsed, requiring further chemotherapy, steroids and radiotherapy.
Throughout December 2013 she rarely returned home, aside from Christmas Day when she had to be rushed back to hospital at 9pm with a treatment-related infection. She will continue to receive treatment for another year.
Scarlett’s parents, Dan and Bryony Clarkson, will both be taking part in the triathlon this year and are hoping to raise even more money and awareness for blood cancer: “We are aiming high with our fundraising again, as this is a cause which is so close to our hearts,” says Dan.
“Having a child with cancer has a devastating impact, both for the child and their family. If we can help reach a day when no other family has to go through the pain of having their child diagnosed with leukaemia, then the pain of our training will be well worthwhile.”
Scarlett met David and Samantha Cameron when they visited the hospital she was being treated. She was re-introduced to Samantha Cameron last year at a Downing Street reception held by the charity as part of September’s Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.
To support Scarlett’s Dragons please visit www.virginmoneygiving.com/SomeoneSpecial/ScarlettsDragons. To keep up with all the latest news from the Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research Blenheim Palace Triathlon, visit www.theblenheimtriathlon.com.
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Will you be racing Blenheim this weekend? Let us know in the comments below!
Are you one of the 7,000 expected to race Blenheim Palace Triathlon this weekend? Feeling ready? 220 will be there, both racing and manning a subs’ stand, come and say hi!
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Age-group events taking place are the super-sprint (400m/13km/3km) and sprint on both days (13/14 June), sprint team relay on Saturday, and youth super-sprint on Sunday. The hardiest 20 souls will also be tackling the Weekend Warrior challenge of as many races as they can manage over the course of the weekend.
The British Super Series get underway on Sunday (14 June), when elites including Mark Buckingham, Lestyn Harrett, Emma Pallant, Alice Sharpe and Sophie Coldwell will shoot for the podium over sprint distance (750m/20km/5km).
Relay teams from three Formula One teams are expected to go head-to-head on Sunday. Situated within Britain’s ‘Motorsport Valley’, the event will see Mercedes AMG, Red Bull and Force India under starter’s orders with three relay teams each
Back for a second year are Scarlett’s Dragons, a 164-strong team, who have rallied together to support 10 year-old Scarlett Clarkson who is currently receiving treatment for leukaemia. Last year the team comprised of 22 dads of children at the Dragon School in Oxford, who took on the Leukaemia & Lymphoma Research Blenheim Palace Triathlon to raise an astonishing £120,000 for the charity.
Matt Sharp and Emma Pallant won last year’s elite races over the sprint distance, with Sharp and second-placed male athlete Mark Buckingham just sneaking in under the 1hr mark. Pallant and Buckingham went on to win last year’s Super Series, and will be looking to make a strong start in this year’s opener.
If you’re thinking of entering this year’s Eirias Middle Distance+ Triathlon then here’s some extra incentive – the organisers are providing a team prize fund of £1.5k for the top three teams.
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>>> Gallery: The Eirias Triathlon 2014
Taking place in Colwyn Bay, North Wales on Saturday 26 September, the middle distance+ race will start with a sea swim of 1900m, followed by a 106km cycle through the Welsh hills, finishing with a 20km coastal run to Porth Eirias Watersports Complex. There will also be a standard distance+ race involving a 1500m swim, 53km cycle and 10km run.
The prizes will be awarded for the top three aggregated individual times achieved by a club or team, for both male and female teams. The winning male and female teams will receive £400 per team, with £250 awarded to the second team and £100 to the third team.
Carol Bridge, overall winner of the 2014 Eirias Middle Distance+ Triathlon
“The Eirias Triathlon is recognised as one of the best and most challenging triathlons in the UK and it attracts a top field,” said race director Simon Hill. “Being a Saturday race and now with the introduction of the cash prize fund we are hoping to see more clubs and teams from North Wales, the North West and beyond on the start line.
Registration to The Eirias Triathlon is open at www.xtramileevents.com/events/ with individual entry fees of £90 for the middle distance and £65 for the standard distance race. Team relay entries are available for £125 or £75 respectively.
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Will you be racing the Eirias Triathlon? Let us know in the comments below!
In a couple of months it will be time for the London Triathlon – and we want you to join in as part of Team Legion and help make a difference to the lives of our Armed Forces family.
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Money raised from events like the London Triathlon allows us to continue helping members of the Royal Navy, British Army, Royal Air Force, Reservists, veterans and their families all year round, as we have done for over 90 years.
Test your stamina by taking part in the world’s largest triathlon on behalf of the Royal British Legion in order to help serving and ex-service personnel and their dependants.
This event attracts over 13,000 triathletes and 30,000 spectators come along to cheer all of the competitors along. The Royal Docks and landmark-laden cycling route into central London make for a pretty stunning backdrop!
There are distances to suit all abilities, from super sprint to Olympic plus, so if you’re up for pushing your limits and taking on this great challenge to help raise money for an incredibly worthwhile cause, then register here.
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Or contact Fiona for more information: [email protected] / 020 3207 2268.
Ahead of tomorrow’s Ironman 70.3 Staffs, Spain’s Javier Gomez says he’s aiming to pick up enough points to qualify for the 70.3 World Champs in Austria.
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>>>Ironman 70.3 Staffs: our pick of the top age-groupers racing
Gomez revealed he had his season planned out months earlier, and is considering the defence of his 70.3 title as important as the 2015 World Triathlon Series.
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We’re on-site tomorrow at Ironman 70.3 Staffs, and will be covering the race on Twitter, with full race reports and galleries on this website afterwards. Good luck to everyone racing!
With Gordon Ramsay leading his GR100 squad into battle at tomorrow’s inaugural Ironman 70.3 Staffs, we speak to him about how it compares to a full Ironman, if Jonathan Ross is still racing – and whether he’s shooting for Kona.
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We’re on-site tomorrow at Ironman 70.3 Staffs, and will be covering the race on Twitter, with full race reports and galleries on this website afterwards. Good luck to everyone racing!
All eyes were on reigning world champ Javier Gomez (ESP) today for the 7am start of Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire, and he didn’t disappoint – though he didn’t take the lead until the run.
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Gloriously bright conditions at Chasewater Reservoir were a relief after the sogginess of yesterday, and after a short delay of around 10mins the pro men including GB’s Will Clarke, Gomez and Nick Kastelein (AUS) entered the water.
Kastelein led Gomez out of the 1.9km swim with a 23:33min split, and Will Clarke was around 40secs back in third position. But disaster struck for Kastelein moments later, as he tweeted us:
@220Triathlon unfortunately that’s where it ended. Flatted in first km of bike. @IM703STAFFS
— Nicholas Kastelein (@NickKastelein) June 14, 2015
There were more surprises further into the bike – Germany’s Markus Thomschke took up the lead and managed to establish a 90sec lead over Gomez and Romain Guillaume (FRA), with Will Clarke around 6mins behind the leader.
Thomschke, who placed second at Wimbleball 2012 and sixth at Ironman UK last year, extended his lead over Gomez to 2:30mins coming out of T2, with Guillaume and Clarke around 22secs behind Gomez.
The first pros are on the run course! #IM703Staffs pic.twitter.com/XvjIwd9PoN
— IRONMAN 70.3 STAFFS (@IM703STAFFS) June 14, 2015
Yet more drama followed on the run: Thomschke started to fall back and Gomez took up the lead, establishing a 1min margin by the halfway point. Clarke was still within 10mins of the lead at this point, in fourth position behind BMC-Uplace teammate Romain Guillaume.
From here there could only be one winner, with Gomez near-unbeatable in this kind of position – and so it proved to be, as he crossed the line in 4:02:13, ahead of Markus Thomschke and Romain Guillaume. Will Clarke finished fourth in 4:11:10.
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1 Gomez, Javier (ESP) +00:00 04:02:13 2 Thomschke, Markus (GER) +05:20 04:07:33 3 Guillaume, Romain (FRA) +06:54 04:09:07 4 Clarke, Will (GBR) +08:57 04:11:10 5 Schilling, Alexander (GER) +15:26 04:17:39 6 Fox, Michael (AUS) +16:42 04:18:55 7 Simon, Oliver (GBR) +17:53 04:20:06 8 Harrison, Stephen (GBR) +20:13 04:22:26 9 Williams, Brad (USA) +21:06 04:23:19 10 Cseik, Marton (HUN) +28:00 04:30:13
A strong field of British women turned up today (14 June) for the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Staffs, including housemates Lucy Gossage and Susie Cheetham, Alice Hector, Georgie Rutherford and Jacqui Slack.
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>>> Ironman 70.3 Staffs: Javier Gomez leaves it to the run for winning move
Rutherford was first out of the water, ahead of Xterra warrior Slack and New Zealand’s Sam Warriner, with Hector and Gossage not far behind.
Georgie Rutherford leads out of the swim; she eventually finished fourth woman
Once on the bike Gossage pushed hard and took the lead by the 37km mark, leading all the way to T2 with a bike split of 2:29:54, and arriving around 7mins ahead of Cheetham and Rutherford. Warriner left transition in fourth place around 12mins behind Gossage, with Hector in fifth.
Lucy Gossage started her lonely run after a bike split of 02:29:54! #IM703Staffs
— IronmanLIVE.com (@IRONMANLive) June 14, 2015
By the halfway point of the run Gossage had built a 10min lead over Cheetham and Rutherford, and that lead grew to 12mins by the time she closed in on the finishing chute, crossing the line in 4:31:09, followed exactly 10mins later by Cheetham, with Warriner taking third place.