After winning the U19 World Championships in Canada at 15 UWA Triathlon Club athlete Rahul Jegatheva could have barely anticipated the challenge he would face nearly 12 months later.

Rahul arrived in Denmark to challenge for a second world title at the 2018 International Triathlon Union Multisport World Championships in the Aquathlon event.

A registration penalty put the 16-year-old 15 seconds behind his fellow competitors, meaning he began the race at the back of the pack.

A strong swimmer, Rahul pushed himself past more experienced challengers to close the gap to the lead pack.

Remarkably, he emerged out of the water sixth placed out of the junior elites, with a 5km run standing between him and a shot at a podium finish.

By the 2.5km mark in the run, Rahul was in third place, pushing his body to the physical limit past cramps and fatigue.

A last minute challenge saw the talented athlete pass Czech competitor Simon Koblizek to claim silver.

Not only second place out of all Junior Elites, Rahul also finished the race in 19th place among all Elite male competitors, less than three minutes behind gold medallist Emmanuel Lejeune, an athlete nearly 10 years older.

After the race, Rahul paid tribute to those who helped him achieve his remarkable success, including UWA Triathlon Club coach Grant Landers, his family, and financial supporters.

Media references

Louis Humberstone

Graduate Officer, UWA Sport Marketing, Communication and Events

marketing@sport.uwa.edu.au

6488 3768