UCLA Triathlon had an amazing trip to Nationals, bonding as a team over Costco trips and team pasta dinners, but also found great success in all three races. On Friday, we had athletes race in Draft Legal and Mixed Team Relay, featuring two men and two women for each school. The MTR was an action-packed, speedy race that showcased the abilities of some of the best all-around athletes in the nation. Edo’s 4th-fastest MTS split immediately put us in a competitive position. Backed by Cassaundra and Michael’s blazing fast swims and Abby’s incredibly fast 800m run, we took 5th place overall!

In the Draft Legal race, Edo placed 11th for men, and Ashlyn and Ella were the 9th and 26th fastest women respectively. It was a highly-competitive field, and Ashlyn and Edo both came from behind in the swim, and biked and ran their way up the field. Ella ended her last race weekend as a collegiate triathlete with an impressive, tactical performance! 

On Sunday, all of our athletes competed in the Olympic distance race, completing a 600m swim (shortened due to water temperatures), a 24-mile bike, and a 6.2-mile run. The bike featured many steep, long hills and long stretches with a headwind, but we were well-equipped after training in the Santa Monica Mountains and on the Pacific Coast Highway. Michael M. placed 16th overall, which was a fantastic improvement over last season’s Nationals performance. Edo placed 26th; Ashlyn, Cassaundra, and Abby were the 23rd, 25th, and 45th women respectively in a very deep field. 

Many of our athletes had lifetime best splits. Julia ran an amazing 10k, averaging faster mile splits than in the 3-mile Iron Bruin race last October. Cassaundra had an insanely fast bike split, averaging close to 19mph after posting the fastest swim split overall. Shilpa finished her first Olympic distance race and Nathan ran a very fast 10k, clocking in at just under 37 minutes. Elliot crushed his first Olympic distance; maybe it was too easy given his first triathlon was a 70.3. Thomas sought redemption after getting a flat out on the bike course at MTS and finally received his well earned medal. Floris, our philosopher, was the only athlete at the event to complete his race while simultaneously contemplating the aestheticism of the sport (his words). Maybe it was finally using nutrition, or maybe it was his new shoes, but Evan made this race look like a walk in the park. Ever have a nightmare where you lose your luggage with all your triathlon gear in it days before the race? Well that’s what happened to Kristen, and yet with the help of some of her teammates she was still able to come and crush some competition.   

We had many seniors and graduate students race – Abby, Angela, Cassaundra, Claire, Evie, Michael W., Ella, and Patrick – all celebrated their last Nationals by achieving great individual success on Sunday. 

Overall, we had an amazing, successful race weekend, and it was made possible with your financial support. We placed 10th overall as a team amongst 84 colleges. We enjoyed board game nights, swim and bike race course recons, and waking up at 4am three mornings in a row. It was the experience of a lifetime, and we left feeling very satisfied with our performances individually and as a team. Thank you for supporting us on our journey to Nationals!