Jessica Chapman Wins Gold In Portland

A Beverley family is celebrating after success in the recent GB Biathle competition in Portland where they represented Yorkshire Biathle Club.

Competing against biathletes from all over the country, Jessica Chapman won gold in the 13 -14 age group and mum Lorraine won bronze in the Masters competition.

Biathle is a continuous run-swim-run event and Jessica had to complete a non-stop 500m run, 100m swim and then another 500m run. Despite the wet and windy conditions she led the run from the start and entered the pool in first place. She increased her lead during the swim, maintained it during the final run and crossed the finishing line in 5 minutes 9 seconds, nine seconds ahead of her nearest rival. The gold medal was a great boost to Jessica who is gradually returning to form after sustaining a broken ankle in December.

It was mum Lorraine’s first biathle competition and she entered the pool in second place after the first 1000m run. She dropped back to third place after the 100m swim and emerged into the rain for the final 1000m run. Despite worsening weather conditions she bravely held on to third place to take a well-earned bronze medal in 14 minutes 15 seconds.

Jessica’s younger brother Luke competed in the 11-12 category and against strong competition from the older boys in his age group finished in a commendable seventh place in 5 minutes 17 seconds.

Another local biathlete representing Yorkshire was Gregan Clarkson who also runs for Kingston-upon-Hull AC. He won gold in the senior competition after completing two 1500m runs with a 200m swim in between. He finished in 12 minutes 38 seconds.
Anyone interested in trying Biathle is invited to Yorkshire Biathle Club’s first competition at Ennerdale Leisure Centre in Hull on Sunday 27 May.

Reported by Kay Farrow