Rohan Creed finished first in yesterday's Killarney triathlon.
WARRNAMBOOL athlete Rohan Creed had one goal when he entered yesterday’s Killarney triathlon — to finish as soon as possible.
But he did better than that.
Creed, 36, won the Warrnambool Tri Club event in 52 minutes and 14 seconds yesterday, edging out highly-fancied Jade Frankel (53.14) and Travis Greening (53.33).
The Killarney triathlon included a 500-metre swim, 16-kilometre bike ride and 4.4km run.
Creed, who broke his back in June last year, said he was happy with his time.
“It is an individual sport. You are trying to get from the start line to the finish line in the shortest time possible,” he said.
“You are not racing for the win or the loss, it’s so you can be happy with your race.
“I thought I was going to struggle with the run today but I ran better than I thought I would, so I am happy.”
Creed said he knew it would be a close finish.
“I was leading off the bike and then I got passed by Clinton Hall, who was running in a team, on the first lap of the run,” he said.
“I tried to go with him for a little bit and I thought ‘no, I can’t go with him when I’m fresh, let alone after a bike and a swim beforehand’.
“So I backed off a bit and ran my own race and was able to hold off Jade and Trav.”
Warrnambool’s Lisa Worrall was the first female across the line.
Worrall, 38, recorded a time of 103 minutes and 52 seconds, to win ahead of Gabrielle Lanman (105.30) and Lisa Logan (105.39).
“I’m very happy,” Worrall said.
“I go in and try and do my best, so I’m happy with that result.
Worrall said she enjoyed the family aspect of the club.
Her husband Brett is also a Warrnambool Tri Club member and their three children competed in the junior event on Saturday, which catered for children up to 11 years old.
Creed also paid credit to the Warrnambool Tri Club and its calendar of events.
“The club does such a great job. You used to have to travel to Melbourne to do triathlons,” he said.
“I don’t leave the area pretty much because with the cycling club and the tri club, you can pretty much do an event every weekend.
“So we are so lucky and so well catered for now.”
justine.mc@standard.fairfax.com.au