It's quite exciting being considered 'elite' and using the same blue carpet the Brownlees and Helen Jenkins have sprinted over on their way to victory.Unfortunately, having the ParaTriathlon race after the men's elite meant being ejected from the Athlete Lounge into the pouring rain and queueing for transition while they removed their equipment.
Dressed only in a GBR trisuit, I got very cold, being unable to control my body temperature due to my sci. Lots of my fellow competitors were willing to give up their clothing for me, but I refused to accept. I ended up being ushered into the first aid tent and wrapped in a woolly blanket and space blanket, where I put on my wetsuit.
The continuous shivering had made my lower back seize up completely and I considered not doing the race. Thanks to big hugs from Emma and constant attention from John, I did race.
George and Rebecca were excellent transition helpers, enduring the weather without complaint. I did a race Pb of 15:55 for the 806m swim, and 22:44 in the race chair, with an overall PB of 1:39:43, which I am pleased with. My bike was awful because I couldn't use my hands properly to change gear they were so cold. I ended up grinding my way round on the wrong cog, wasting valuable energy. I also left my pushing gloves out in the rain and I got no grip on the rims until they had shed some water. Lots of lessons learnt.
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