Peter Blake, Managing Director of CMS Group visited the Gold Coast in September to join ‘5000 of the world’s Triathletes’ including elite professionals in Queensland for the 2018 ITU World Triathlon Grand Final.

This was Peter’s second time in competing for the ITU Grand Final, having competed two years ago in Mexico for the now famous race that saw the Brownlee Brothers make headlines. This year the race that brings together 46 nations competed at the Southport Broadwater Parklands.

We asked Peter to tell us about his inspiring experience.

What was it like competing in Australia?
A Spring September is like a summer’s day in the UK. Temperatures hovered around 24-26°c but the wind did pick up on a number of days including race day. For me the race was much harder in Australia due to the difficult sea conditions.

What place did you finish?
I finished 6th Brit and 62nd overall.

What was the most exciting part?
There is nothing like finishing a great race over the blue carpet at a World Championship race. The buzz and excitement is amazing and can be very emotional as it’s the conclusion of a year’s hard work.

What was the most challenging part?
The swim, it is my weakest discipline, combined with high winds and choppy water and also hampered by having my goggles ripped off twice due to the rough sea conditions. It should have gone better.

What made you want to compete in Triathlons?
Triathlon is a combination of four disciplines; swim, bike, run and the transitions between each. This means you can be competitive if you are good at one or consistent over the main three. With the Age Group Classes, it also means you can compete on the world stage. It’s very exciting and keeps you fit.

ITU World Triathlon