ISAAC, TEO EMERGE NATIONAL TRIATHLON JUNIOR CHAMPIONS

IPOH, July 15 (Bernama) -- Isaac Tan and Teo Sze Hui were crowned the national men’s and women’s champions at the 2024 National Junior Triathlon Championships held at Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR) yesterday (July 14).

The Malaysian Triathlon Association said in a statement that the competition also concurrently held the National Under-15 Championship and the 2024 Asia Triathlon Junior Cup, which meant that Isaac and Sze Hui (the best Malaysian finishers) were also racing against Asia’s elite juniors in open field comparison.

Isaac and Sze Hui were the country’s main hopes in the top competition which features Asia's best elite juniors aged between 16 and 19 years old.

Isaac, 19, finished 19th out of 72 participants (first position went to a Hong Kong junior whose winning time was 58 min:48s) completing the race that combined a 750-metre (1 lap) swim, 20-kilometre (km) bike ride and 5-km run in 1 hour 55 seconds (1:00:55).

In the meantime, Isaac said he felt he could do better and was satisfied to maintain his status as the country's best men’s junior triathlete.

“This is my first junior championship and my third national overall title, (finished 27th out of 40 in Asia Triathlon Cup) in Kota Kinabalu (Asia Triathlon Cup - Elite and Age-group) last year and in Putrajaya (26th out of 65 in Asia Triathlon Cup) in February (2024).

“I’m still adjusting to the new training programme and I’m preparing for the Asian Championships in Saudi Arabia this December and I hope my performance will improve in the next few months,” he said.

Meanwhile, Sze Hui finished ninth out of 32 competitors with a time of 1:11:53 (Asian elite first position winning time was 1hr 05:32s).

She said she was very satisfied to return with a winning streak after suffering an injury that forced her to rest for six months.

“It was great fun. This is my first competitive race in six months after being involved in a cycling accident and breaking a bone.

“This decision (to race) is definitely important because I intend to represent the country at the SEA Games next year. I will try to place myself among the best racers, there are a few more senior athletes that I have to overcome. Due to the age limit, a few of them cannot compete this time.”

-- BERNAMA