Thousands of sport-loving fans flocked to the Bahrain International Circuit over the weekend to cheer on the world’s top athletes as well as family and friends participating in the Ironman 70.3 Middle East Championship.
Children and women kicked off the triathlon’s festivities on Thursday by competing in IRONKids and IRONGirl, which were both held on the track.
Year 12 St Christopher’s School student, Kizzy Price, took home the gold in the 5km IRONGirl event. The 16-year-old who resides in Hamala takes after her father Andy, 52, who works at the British Embassy. He has competed in pentathlons for the UK national team.
He has been coaching Kizzy for the past seven years as well as other aspiring athletes. Andy often runs biathles withhis wife, Vicki, a teacher at St Christopher’s School, and son James, 18, who studies in the UK.
Since 2010, he and his family have participated in three World Biathle Championships and a European Championship in which James won gold. Kizzy has notched various sporting accolades over the years. She qualified for the World Championships in Bulgaria in 2011 and in2012 she won a team silver at the World Championships in Dubai and finished fifth individually.
Aside from claiming the IRONGirl cup, shealso clinched first place in the Ironman mixed relay event as part of the Bahrain Triathlon Club.
Andy said: “Kizzy is a phenomenal athlete and I am always proud of her. She won the ladies race last year and IRONGirl this year and now the mixed team category.
“She really enjoyed the weekend, especially when she crossed that finish line in IRONGirl and was presented with the prizeby her hero, Ironman World Champion Daniela Ryf. She also got to meet her other hero Jodie Cunnama. Kizzy really enjoyed the event and the Bahrain Triathlon Association did a great job organising it.”
Meanwhile, 12-year-old Vince Vrijhof, who also trains with Andy on Mondays and Wednesdays, won the 1.5km IRONKids eventfor the second year in a row. Andy is excited about Vince’s accomplishment, especially as he has only been running for about eight months.
Vince, a student at St Christopher’s School who lives in Jasra, said: “I am grateful to the organisers and the volunteersfor putting together such a great event for the youth of Bahrain.”
His sister Roma, 14, also ran in the mixed relay and her team notched third place. Their father, Paul, 43, who is the managing director of Dutch independent tank storage provider Vopak, is thrilled.
He said: “Generally, these events are great and it is amazing what Bahrain is capable of pulling. Ironman is a huge undertaking, but bringing world-class athletes to our island is such an inspiration for the youth of Bahrain. I would encourage the crowd to come outand cheer on the participants next year as they are true heroes!”
