Mike Salisbury, who was born with a congenital limb defect to his left arm, successfully defended his title at the event in Eton Dorney – racing in the men’s PTS5 classification and finishing first with a time of 59:52.
His success on Saturday follows a bout of Covid only last month, which forced him to pull out of a World Cup paratriathlon event in Spain. Earlier this month, he placed 9th at the World Triathlon Para Series in Montreal, Canada.
The full time geography teacher and assistant head of sixth form at Dame Allan’s Schools, in Fenham, said: “It is the first time I’ve gone under an hour, and I raced almost four minutes faster than in 2021, so I’m quite satisfied with the progress over the year.
“I felt a lot stronger than in Montreal and I’m looking forward to getting a few good weeks of training in before the World Series event in Swansea.”
Next steps for British Paratriathlon Championship winner
Mr Salisbury entered his first British paratriathlon in September 2020 and has represented Great Britain on the world paratriathlon circuit for almost a year. Next month, he will compete in the World Triathlon Para Series, in Swansea, and at the British Triathlon Grand Final in Sunderland.
He said: “I’m excited to see the Grand Final come to Sunderland, not least because it will be a local event for me, and I’ll be able to train on the roads and get used to the water conditions.
“What I would love to see are some familiar faces at the event and I would encourage people to come along and enjoy a really spectacular weekend of sport, involving some of the finest athletes in the UK.”
Images: Mike Salisbury at Eton Dorney
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