David goes to ITU Cross World Champs
I only starting training for my first triathlon just over 10 months ago and already getting the opportunity to compete in the World Championships was a dream come true. It was held in Svendborg, Denmark on the 10 of July.
Coming from a cycling and running background I knew my swim would need a lot of work, so I trained and trained putting numerous hours into my activities. This helping me to get out the water in 11th position, way faster than I would ever imagine. I was extremely proud of myself trying my best after the swim to not just catch but overtake the cyclists. The run was by far the hardest of the three disciplines, although it was only 5km, with some beach running and many steep hills. One of the hills needed ropes to get up. I crossed the finish completely spent, but extremely happy with my results finishing in 6th position overall in the junior elite men.
I am looking forwards to the future as I begin to up my game, leaving sprint distance triathlons and begin the training for the more painful standard distance triathlons. None of this would be possible without the help of the best coach, Viv Williams
From his Coach:
David comes from a mountain biking and cross country running background. He was writing matric when he started training with me, in August 2017. He termed himself a beginner swimmer, but after some swim stroke correction early September, he managed to swim 1:40/100m. David is a conscientious dedicated and extremely determined athlete, working well in the pool, completing loads of mileage with technique, speed and endurance sets. Before leaving for World champs he completed two mega multiple swim and run repeat sets. These included 4 sets of (4 x 200m swims/600-1000m run) The swims were of a progressive nature with the interval reducing from 30sec- 10sec between swims.
David was completing these 200m repeats in times from 2:50 down to 2:36 per 200m.
David received ELITE JUNIOR South African colours and participated in the World Cross triathlon Championships in Denmark. In a highly competitive junior field, he placed 6th overall (11th out of the swim, averaging 1:17/100m)
