Two Zimbabwean young masters of endurance, Rebecca Duncan of Chisipite Senior School and Drew Williams of St John’s College, leave Saturday to represent Zimbabwe at the ITU World Triathlon Championships in Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A. Both Duncan and Williams have been training intensively in Zimbabwe in all three disciplines of triathlon swimming, cycling and running, after qualifying in May at the ATU African Triathlon in Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt.
The Junior World Champ course, part of the full range of world championship categories which run from 15-19 September in the Windy City, starts with a swim 750m in Lake Michigan, followed by a 20km cycle through downtown Chicago and ending with a 5km run to the finish line.
Last month Williams and Duncan both travelled to South Africa to participate in the Mandela Day Triathlon as a warm up to the World Champs – both came home with silver medals. They know the competition in Chicago will be very tough, with all of the world’s top elite and junior triathletes competing; however, they also know that the exposure and experience to competition at this high level will be fantastic for them personally and could push them to new personal best times. Zimbabwe’s participation in the ITU World Championships at the junior level is also a boost for the development of triathlon as a sport in Zimbabwe from the schools level on up.
The Zimbabwe Olympic Committee is sponsoring Duncan’s and Williams’ trip, which also serves as an Olympic qualifying event. Williams, who participated in the Youth Olympics in Nanjing in August 2014, will race in the Junior Men’s race on Thursday, 17 September. Duncan’s Junior Women’s race will take place on Friday, 18 September.