Euan Bell and Jasmine Gray, students of the British School Al Khubairat, shone in the Abu Dhabi Inter-School Aquathlon series at Yas Beach – but it was Brighton College who took the honours as top team.
Over 100 students from Raha International, Glenelg, Canadian International, Al Yasmina School as well as Brighton College and British School Al Khubairat did a 200m swim and then stretched their legs for a 1.5km run on the footpaths of Yas Island.
With multiple awards for male and female competitors, age groups spanned under-12s to under-19s.
Bell triumphed in the boys’ under-16 age group in 10 minutes 23 seconds to top the overall boys’ standings, while Gray registered an impressive time of 10mins 09secs to win the girls’ category. Raha International clinched the school award for highest participation, while Brighton College took first place for best overall performance.
With the emphasis on participation and encouraging the students to take part in sport, all runners were rewarded with a medal, swim cap and a Yas Beach T-shirt.
And the feedback was positive from the students who participated in the opening race of the series.
Thirteen-year-old Raha International student, James Wilson, who won his age group, said: “My favourite part was the run. The fun thing with this event is doing the swim first which makes it more challenging and then needing to chase down the leaders.”
Hannah Burns, 13, from Al Yasmina School who was the second fastest girl on the day, said: “I love this race. It’s really fun and I enjoyed taking part.”
Rachael Hughes, head of the Abu Dhabi Tri Kids, who organised the event, is also Raha International School coach. She was delighted with the turnout and hoped the kids had taken something from it.
“We are very pleased to provide greater opportunities for our youth in sports,” said Hughes.
“This series is a great way to get the kids together for an exciting event and teach them important principles associated with racing and representing their school.”
And Yas Beach director, Omar Al-Jaddou, was delighted to play host for the event. He said: “Yas Beach’s focus on community makes this event an ideal fit.
“It was fantastic to see the kids rule the beach with their parents and younger siblings offering support. We are looking forward to hosting the next event in January.”
