Day one of The Championship 2023 saw triathlon celebrated across all ages, distances and abilities at the x-bionic sphere in Šamorín. Not only were the Slovak Championships decided over the Sprint and Olympic distance, but Special Olympics celebrated their largest global triathlon event, and hundreds started their triathlon careers in the Try-athlon and the Kids’ Race.
In the Slovak Cup (sprint) Alex Madák took out the overall win in 1:04:16 while in the women, the national title went to Katarína Krídlová in 1:10:53.
Local Bratislava athlete, Peter Rojtas, took out the Slovak National Championships over the Olympic distance in 1:54:03 and Ivana Kuriackova took out the women’s title in 2:04:01.
But it was the inspiring Special Olympics athletes who will hold a special place in today’s memories. Travelling from all four corners of the world to compete in the largest Special Olympics Triathlon Championships to date, they came from Germany, Italy, Israel, Finland, Guatemala, Slovakia, The Netherlands, Puerto Rico, Estonia, Monaco and the USA, including Chris Nikic, the first athlete with Down Syndrome to complete a long distance triathlon.
Full results of the day can be found here: https://www.abavent.de/anmeldeservice/challengesamorinslovakia2023/ergebnisse
Racing continues tomorrow with the flagship The Championship race over the middle distance featuring a start list of top elite and age group athletes who have qualified to race at The Championship at one of the 35 Challenge Family events around the world over the past 12 months.
With names such as Frederic Funk, Aaron Royle, Clément Mignon, Fenella Langridge, Sara Peréz Sala and Marjolaine Pierré on the start line, an exciting day of racing is guaranteed. Live coverage starts at 8:15am CEST with race start scheduled for 8:30am CEST with expert English commentary by Belinda Granger. Watch at www.challenge-family.live.
