Wight Tri athlete Liz Dunlop has secured her place at the 2026 World Championships in Pontevedra, Spain after a stormy but successful race at the Barry Island Sprint Triathlon last Saturday (23rd August).
The 70-year-old, who is supported by the Isle of Wight’s talented athlete scheme, began her day at 06:30 with a rough sea swim that pushed many competitors to the limit. Originally planned as a 750m course, strong swells stretched the distance to around 1,200m, with Liz finishing the swim in 27:19 – describing it as her toughest ever in 36 years of triathlon racing.
Despite the brutal conditions, she pressed on into the 20km bike leg, which consisted of three scenic laps around Barry Island. She completed the ride in 40:34, making the most of the draft-legal format and recovering some time lost in the water.
The final segment saw Liz tackle a 5.6km run over 2 laps around Barry Docks and the seafront, where she crossed the finish line in 30:40 to complete the event with an overall time of 1:44:39.
Her performance placed her 3rd in the 65–69 age category, but with her 70th birthday approaching, she moves into the 70–74 bracket – where she ranked 1st and earned automatic qualification for the World Championships.
Liz is showing no signs of slowing down. She is due to fly to Istanbul on Tuesday to compete in the European Championships and has already secured qualification for both sprint and standard distances at the 2026 Worlds in Spain, as well as the European Championships in Tarragona.
Liz Dunlop, Wight Tri athlete, has said:
“That was the hardest swim I’ve ever done. I was just glad to feel the sand under my feet again.”
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