"Wow, that’s me they are shouting for!" I thought as I flew down the hill at nearly 40mph …on my bike, I hasten to add. Those shouts from the crowd gave me the extra will power to continue pushing as hard as I could on the bike leg of the Age Group Triathlon World Championships in Lausanne in September of this year.

I still find it hard to believe that I really did compete in that event; it all seems like a dream now (although the credit card bill is a bit of a nightmare and certainly a reality)! Over the last few years, I have dabbled in a few of the local sprint triathlons and managed my first Olympic distance event in July last year.

Circumstances meant that the events I entered this year were qualifying events for GB team representation in the World Championships. As I had entered those events, I thought I may as well put my name forward (for a fiver) for selection, not for one minute thinking I stood a chance. I had recently taken up the services of a triathlon coach and had detailed my goals to her: 2006 - take part and enjoy Olympic distance events, 2007 – qualify for the Worlds. She had her work cut out for her, as my sport at school was gymnastics and all three disciplines are relatively new to me!

Things went horribly wrong in my first event in Shropshire in June. I hyperventilated in the swim, had the "knock" on the bike, ran like a slug and worst of all…hated every minute of it. I didn’t even get that post race buzz! It left me feeling very down and miserable about my triathlon career! So miserable in fact, that I withdrew my name from the selection list, cancelled my next two events and threatened to take up tiddly winks instead!

A reassessment was in order, and my coach suggested just doing the things I enjoyed. I started doing just that, and with the self inflicted pressure off, I was soon back to harder training sessions. It was with relief that I had a good race at Salford at the end of July…well, not in terms of speed, but in enjoyment and the knowledge that I had tried as hard as I could. It was going to be my last Olympic event this year and I was looking forward to changing the emphasis of my training to some mountain biking, as I wanted to enter the ‘End 2 End’ event in September.

And then the email came … "there is a place available on the GB team in your age group. I need to know like yesterday if you want to go!"

I agonised over the decision – I didn’t really deserve to go, could I afford it, did I want to continue swimming in Mooragh Lake for the rest of August, what about the ‘End 2 End’, would people laugh at me for coming last…but it was with the support and encouragement of friends and family, that a few days later I was ordering my GB tri suit!

I travelled to Geneva with Cat Dryden where we met up with Juan Kinley and Andy Bell who had all qualified in their age groups. Lausanne is the home of the Olympic committee and is situated on Lake Geneva surrounded by the majestic snow capped Alps. Cat and I were in awe of our beautiful surroundings and rather overwhelmed by the scale of the event we were about to compete in, in less than 48 hours.

We were both competing late on in the afternoon, which meant we had to endure each others nerves for several hours. We were envious of Andy and Juan who were finished before we had started. Some things stick in my mind from while I was waiting to be allowed into transition before my event: watching other age group competitors coming over the line, seeing old slow men coming to the end of their swim in the 75-79 age group, AWAD (athletes with a disability) competitors putting on incredibly brave performances, the commentators warning the 20-24 age men of the steep descents in the bike section and a reminder that their bikes were probably worth a lot (no other group received that warning!), Andy’s advice to me was "don’t use your brakes on the bike!"

And before I knew, it was time for me to make my way down the 1km length transition area to do what us triathletes have to do – methodically make sure that all our equipment is set out in such a way that we can make the change from one discipline to the next as quickly and smoothly as possible (it’s the only thing I seem to be able to do with any speed in a triathlon!!!). And once I started doing that, I started calming down and systematically going through the necessary tasks before the starting horn. Before I knew it, I was lining up along the pontoon with 61 other 40 to 44 year old, wetsuit clad ladies from all over the world waiting to start our race.

I had a reasonable swim and thoroughly enjoyed the bike section (I did use my brakes a bit!) and then onto the run, the discipline I find the most difficult… The support was unbelievable all around the 10km course. It was very special to see a big Manx flag (I have lived here for 6 years) and the small contingent of Manx supporters at the start of the 4 lap run, but then I also got excited when GB (I was born in the UK) supporters were shouting my name (no, I’m not famous - they had a list!). I started to get confused when I went past a South African flag (I lived there for 30 years), a Canadian flag (my Mum is Canadian and lives there), a Ukrainian flag (my grandparents were Ukrainian). An identity crisis or what? But I soon got over that personal dilemma as I felt so proud to be wearing GB kit.

I felt emotional as I crossed the line waving my little GB flag. Admittedly, it wasn’t the finest athletic achievement of the day, but an incredible experience with some very special memories that will stay with me for a very long time.

Tanya Sanderson

October 2006

Back to 2006 UK and World Archive

Back to Events and Results