Over 4,000 athletes competed at the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships this past weekend in Omaha, Nebraska. The Olympic distance event took place on Saturday, followed by the Sprint tri on Sunday. Paragon athlete Andrew Joy raced hard in both events and reaped some great rewards from a year of hard training.
Last year in Omaha, Joy placed 51st in the Olympic and 29th in the Sprint in the 20-24 Age Group. This year, Joy moved up to 29th in the Olympic and 14th in the Sprint. Most notably, Joy clocked in at just under 1:06:00 for the 40k bike. "I couldn't believe that bike split. I was cranking and flying up the climbs." Joy has been competing in many more bike races during the past year, and the experience has shown significant improvements in triathlon.
These successes came despite a dicey crash at the Tree of Life Criterium just four days prior to the National Championships. Joy was toward the front of the pack when he overlapped wheels with another cyclist. A pile-up followed, leaving Joy on the ground with gaping holes in his jersey, some respectable road rash, broken spokes, and a cracked helmet (the new bike was okay!). Joy recovered well and immediately turned to what he needed to do for the next race. Great work Andrew!
Saturday August 12 - USA Triathlon Age Group National Championship - Olympic
Andrew Joy - 29th in 20-24 Age Group
UTSA Triathlon - Two team members also qualified and competed!
Sunday August 13 - USA Triathlon Age Group National Championship - Sprint
Andrew Joy - 14th in 20-24 Age Group
