COLLEGIATE athlete Jazmin Phillips' road to Mexico took a dip in the Whanganui River as the 17-year-old was first home for the 2016 Bridge to Bridge Open swim yesterday afternoon.
On a busy weekend of sport and leisure events around town there were 65 entries for the Whanganui Multisport Club'sannual race, down from 89 in March last year. The course consists of 3km and 1km swims for individuals and teams, with the 3km course starting at the Aramoho Rowing Club pontoon and finishing in a dash from the water at the Union Boat Club, after passing underneath the train and Dublin St bridges.
Phillips won the 3km race in the wetsuit category, finishing in 31m 58s, while Wanganui High School's Jamie Bridger was winner of the non-wetsuit grade in 34m 05s. Preparing for the ITU Aquathon World Championships in Cozumel, Mexico this September, Phillips thought it best to race under similar conditions by wearing her suit.
"I'm going in triathlons now, having been in swimming, and I go a lot in wetsuits [for multisport] so that's what I'm trying to do." She tipped her hat to Rebecca Brown for also going hard at the start, being right with her as they pushed through the water. "You couldn't see a thing, and it was hard to where I was going. "There were logs."
Nonetheless, the teenager was a little surprised to win the Bridge to Bridge, although she noted it was more of a young person's event this year as entry is compulsory for the Collegiate students in her sports programme, while many of the town's multisport veterans were away.
"I thought there'd be some of the 'old men' in there. Thought Rob Gemmell would be in it and I'd follow him." Phillips will now focus on the New Zealand Secondary School championships next month.
