Annual General Meeting 2008

Today the TESE Annual General Meeting was held at the K2 Centre in Crawley, Sussex.

Our Chairman, Martin Harris, led the meeting which included his Chairman's report of the year. Treasurer, Mike Green, gave details of the income and expenditure of the region and Kat Valk, Regional Development Manager, provided a summary of development efforts and challenges.

A new consitution for the committee was also ratified at the meeting to bring it up to date following changes in the national governance structure which introduced the new Triathlon England governing body.

All governance documentation including minutes will be added to the TESE website for inspection by all members.

All committee members were re-elected into the same roles with the exception of Derek Bowley who was replaced by Chris Roberts as Coaching Co-Ordinator.

South East IRC Team Victory

They have now won the Mazda Inter Regional Championships four times in a row.

The South East region held onto their title in the Mazda British Triathlon Inter Regional Championships on Saturday following a series of six exciting races across Tri Star and Youth levels. The defending champions held off challenges from Scotland and the improved Eastern region who finished second and third respectively.

The championships were held at the sports centre at Aldershot Garrison which will be the holding camp for Team GB when they gather before the London Games in 2012. The athletes swam in a 50m pool before completing a technical bike course around the barracks. The racing continued with a run combining grass and track.

The race proved to be a success for the South East off the field of play as well as on it. Triathlon England South East Region hosted an excellently organised event, thanks in particular to the Irish Guards, Trisport Coaching UK the local sponsor, Farnham Tri Club and Martin Allen the event organiser. Special thanks also to Sarah Coope, Team Manager and Bodyworks for the fantastic support they gave the athletes.

During the presentation of the medals and awards British Triathlon Federation Director, Ian Braid, announced that in 2009 the Mazda British Triathlon Inter Regional Championships will be held at Bryn Bach Parc in Tredegar, Wales. Next year’s race will include an open water swim for the first time and be staged on the course used in the Corus Elite Series.

Results of the 2008 Championships:
1. South East
2. Scotland
3. Eastern
4. North West
5. London
6. East Midlands
7. Wales
8. West Midlands
9. Yorkshire and Humberside
10. South West
11. North East

IRCs Venue Change

British Triathlon and Triathlon England South East would like to announce that the venue for this years Inter Regional Championships, to be held on Saturday 30th August, has been changed.

The event will no longer take place in Crawley, a new venue at Aldershot Garrison has been found. British Triathlon and Triathlon England South East recently became aware of an unexpected issue with the course at Crawley, leading us to locate a new venue within the South East.

We apologise for any inconvenience this causes to competitors and their families, but rest assured that the new venue at Aldershot will provide the opportunity for some excellent racing.

The first race of the day is scheduled for 11am, with the event finishing by 3pm.More event details including a full detailed race briefing document will be available within the next few weeks. Team managers should speak to their Regional Development Managers if they have any questions.

Committee Meeting June 2008

We had some guest members at the meeting tonight. John Muddeman and Andrew Bell from HQ events department joined for a while to discuss the IRCs. The IRCs took up a lot of the meeting discussions. We also looked at the childrens series and coach education issues.

Kids Made of Steel

Around 400 children proved they were made of steel today at the K2 centre in Crawley. The children, aged between 8 and 13 completed a triathlon as part of the latest Corus Kids of Steel national initiative. Girls and boys from all over the south east pulled on their swimming trunks and running shoes to get fit.

The Kids of Steel event was the first in a national series of 12 organised by British Triathlon. The emphasis is on children participating for fun and just trying the sport. The pupils put in hard effort to complete the triathlon course which included a 75 metre swim, then a 1.5 kilometre bike and finished with a 1.5km run.

Other activities for the children were available on the day including the British Cycling ‘Go Ride’ initiative which helped them with bike skills.

Kat Valk, Regional Development Manager for Triathlon England said: “The feedback we have had from this event is amazing. The kids loved every minute of it. We also owe Thomas Bennett school in Crawley a big ‘thank you’ for their help in creating the event"

Bannatyne's Banbury Sign Up

Bannatyne's Banbury have agreed to incorporate triathlon events, challenges and training into their programmes. They will be assisted by Cherwell Triathlon Club member, Richard Hughes, with assistance from Kat Valk the TESE Regional Development Manager and the National Project Manager Dewi Winkle. The club realises the opportunity to retain and entice new members as well as recognising benefits of family events and the social aspect the sport has to offer.

For information or advice on setting up triathlon related activities in Health Clubs email dewiwinkle@britishtriathlon.org

First Disabled Accreditation

St. Mary's Tri Club has become the first club from the South East to achieve the Triathlon England 'Disabled Triathlete Inclusive Club' accreditation.

Dean Baker, the club's senior coach has completed the BTF Coaching Disabled Triathlete coach education module. He is delivering fully inclusive disabled training sessions. The club also hosts a fully inclusive event as part of their commitment to the developing disabled triathlete opportunities.

For more information about St. Mary's Tri Club please contact Dean by email at Db241162@aol.com

For more information about becoming a Disabled Triathlete Inclusive Club, please contact Julian Wills on julianwills@britishtriathlon.org