Courtney Atkinson has been crowned Australian Triathlon Champion for the third time, after securing his title in searing conditions on Perth’s waterfront. He then followed this up a few weeks later winning the Australian sprint distance triathlon champs.

Fellow Orca-sponsored athletes Debbie Tanner and Clark Ellice have also seen success, taking out the women’s and men’s titles at the New Zealand National Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships.

Tough conditions saw the elite competitors lining up in scorching temperatures that peaked at 35 degrees in Australia, which created extremely tough conditions for the entire field as they came out of the swim and hit the bike leg. The day belonged to Atkinson who referred to the conditions as “testing”, especially for his first hit out of the season.

Meanwhile, Clark Ellice upset his more seasoned opponents to win the latest round of the Contact My Sport Series and with it the New Zealand Sprint Distance Triathlon Championships near Taupo. Shane Reed and Kris Gemmell came in third and fourth respectively. The women’s race was won by world number ten Anja Ditmar from Germany, ahead of first New Zealand home and world number five Debbie Tanner.

Ellice was delighted with his win in perfect conditions at idyllic Kinloch, giving the New Plymouth athlete a great boost ahead of the final Olympic qualifying race at Mooloolaba in late March.

“This is just awesome a great won to win. This is a great start to the year for me, especially after such a shocker year last year and gives me great hope that I can get to Beijing. Everything is on track, I’m not getting carried away but to run with the likes of Docherty and Reed and finish strong is just fantastic.”

Debbie Tanner emphasized the day was about more than just the race itself.

“It is important to get back racing and back into good habits, not only on race day. The preparation and final few days before a race is just as important. I’m certainly happy with my form and where I am in my training programme. This is a big season, I’m happy to give Anja this one but I promise to try and turn the tables on the big day in Beijing in August.”