Yiannis | Europe Triathlon Championships
Centre member Yiannis competed at the 2022 Europe Triathlon Championships Munich, coming 8th in the 35 – 39 male age group sprint.
The event took place on Sunday 14th August 2022 at the Munich Olympiapark, Germany. The race was very eventful, with Yiannis finishing only 37 seconds off the podium.
Yiannis explained “I came out of the lake on my own in 6th place, I felt like I had a good swim and pushed hard on the bike for a few miles before I got caught by a group of 3. We worked hard together, but then halfway through the cycle we got caught up by a huge group of 17 who were going very fast, therefore I tucked in and stayed in that group. I felt fresh and ready to get on the run, I knew this group had made up a huge amount of time and that if I could out run them, I would get on the podium”.
Yiannis was feeling good by the end of the cycle but then someone knocked him off his bike during the next transition, causing instant pain as he fell over and hit his left shoulder on the ground. He got straight back up but then slipped, causing him to fall over again. At this point his head was all over the place but he got out of transition and he attacked the run, even though his left shoulder was causing him a lot of pain.
He overtook most of the group within a few minutes but then struggled with the first mile. He said “I got faster as the run went on, maybe a mental thing because of the falls”. Three of the athletes in his pack got on the podium and he over took a few people that normally beat him. Yiannis gave everything after the first mile of the run, which meant he couldn’t outsprint a fellow GB competitor on the line.
Yiannis said “I had the best race and raced smart but I knew the falls cost me a podium, as by the time I came out of my transition, the others were already out of theirs. I am really pleased that it was so close and how far I have come in Triathlon in such a short space of time”.
“The experience of being at the Munich European Championships with all the other events taking place at the Olympic Park was amazing. During my race we had a huge crowd around the course, which helped me mentally and to push on, despite thinking about stopping the race due to my shoulder pain”.
Yiannis thanks everyone for all the support he receives from the Centre and our members.
