Steadman and Patrick win gold in Buffalo City and qualify for Rio
Lauren Steadman and Alison Patrick met the British Triathlon automatic qualification criteria for the Rio 2016 Paralympic Games by winning gold at the Buffalo City ITU World Paratriathlon Event in South Africa.
An excellent start to the season saw the Great Britain team win three gold, two silver and one bronze medal.
Steadman, 23, won the PT4 category and has now qualified for her third Paralympic Games, having competed twice before as a swimmer. She said:
“The top women weren’t here today so I planned to keep it steady and ensure that nothing went wrong. Meeting automatic qualification was the absolute priority.
“The swim was calm, the bike was a little hilly. Overall it was a great way to start the season!”
Alison Patrick, 28 from Dunfermline won the PT5 race for visually impaired athletes, guided by Nicole Walters.
Ryan Taylor, 22, a former England cerebral palsy footballer from Derby, demonstrated that he is a rising talent with gold in the men’s PT2 event.
David Hill started the season with silver in the men’s PT4 after an injury troubled 2015.
Phil Hogg was another silver medal winner in the PT1 category and Melissa Reid won bronze in the PT5 category with Hazel Smith guiding.
Head coach Jonathon Riall said:
“A great start to 2016, with two more quota places secured for Rio and two athletes meeting automatic qualification.”
Steadman and Patrick will be put forward for selection by ParalympicsGB in the summer. General selection for the rest of the team will take place following the ETU European Championships at the end of May and the conclusion of the ITU World Paratriathlon Event Series in June.
