Teams from West Kilbride and Bridge of Weir, representing Renfrewshire in the Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon final, finished in first and second place respectively in a thrilling contest that also saw a world-class exhibition team of Yvonne Murray-Mooney, Andrew Lindsay and Kirsty Balfour compete.
The winning team of Andrew Donaldson, Mathew McCusker and Adam Powis, who are all aged just 16, triumphed over fellow Renfrewshire residents Evan Williams, Scott Uric and 14-year-old Simon Uric as they also beat other teams from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Oban.
The final, in aid of supporting Glasgow’s 2014 Commonwealth Games bid, took place at Tollcross Park Leisure Centre on Saturday 29 September after a three-week heats process across the nation where the fastest two teams in each region were whittled down to compete in the final to win an activity holiday in Scotland.
Andrew Donaldson led the team off to finish the 1,000m swim in a time of 10:54 minutes. Mathew McCusker then posted a time of 22 minutes for the 20km cycle with Adam Powis bringing the team home with a split of 41:12 minutes for the 10km run, with a total Tryathlon time of 1:14:06 hours.
Scott Urie, part of the second-placed team who finished just under three minutes behind the winning team and competing with his son Simon, said: “We all had a great day at the Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon final and it was fantastic to compete with my son, I just wish I could run as fast as him! Today has shown what a great venue Glasgow would be for the 2014 Commonwealth Games and that it would be a huge success.”
Oban was represented by 14-year-old Eilidh Muir in the swim and 29-year-old Stuart Ashley and 39-year-oild Nick Weasley from Atlantis Leisure, venue for the heats in the area, in the cycle in run and the team finished third in a time of 1:18:43 hours.
Fourth place was secured by 17-year-old Meg Smith, 24-year-old Kay Morrill and 28-year-old Lee Birrell from Edinburgh with a time of 1:29:32 hours and Glasgow finished in fifth and sixth places through Andrew Wilson, Nuala McGloin, and Peter Birrell from Sumerston (1:34:13 hours) and Derek Cardno, 11-year-old son Martin and brother-in-law Hugh Moore, all from Clydebank (1:48:97 hours).
Clydesdale Bank Glasgow 2014 Ambassadors Murray-Mooney, Balfour and Lindsay competed against the regional finalists with Yvonne sticking to her athletics roots for the run, Andrew Lindsay demonstrating why he is double Paralympic champion in the pool and Kirsty Balfour swapping her goggles for a bike helmet as she competes in the cycle leg. Competing outside their normal disciplines, the team finished in last place.
5,000m Commonwealth champion Murray-Mooney said: “The Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon final was of such a high standard and even though we didn’t all do our normal sports, I was shocked to see how well the teams did and many congratulations to Renfrewshire for taking the top two spots and all the other teams for taking part in the event”
The Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon was created to encourage the Scottish public to play their part in supporting the Glasgow’s Commonwealth Games bid, with the winning city between Glasgow and Abuja, Nigeria, announced in Sri Lanka on 09 November.
Derek Casey, Glasgow 2014 bid Director, said: ""The Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon embodied everything that is great about Scotland and the Games – it was a fun event in a first-class venue, where competitors gave their all. Everyone was cheered on by passionate spectators, with the competitors reaping the benefits and going on to have the performance of their lives.
“But more than that the smiles on everyone’s face as their team finished showed everyone had the time of their lives – just like athletes and spectators will in Glasgow if we are lucky enough to win the right to host the Games in 2014.”
Clydesdale Bank is a major supporter of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth games bid, as well as being the sponsor of the 2006 Scottish team who competed in Melbourne and won 29 medals and the Tryathlon was also held to raise money for Clydesdale Banks’ charity partner, the British Heart Foundation.
Director of Retail Banking, Steve Reid, said: “The enthusiasm and dedication of all the entrants for the Clydesdale Bank Tryathlon is hugely impressive, and Renfrewshire need to be warmly congratulated for their success. The popularity of this competition illustrates the enthusiasm and support across Scotland for Glasgow being successful in its bid for the 2014 Commonwealth Games."
Clydesdale Bank is continuing its support of the Scottish team through to the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games in Pune and Commonwealth Games in Delhi in 2010.