The fifth Taieri Mouth Multisport and Duathlon event took place in the coastal township south of Dunedin yesterday, restricting its entry numbers to 100 to meet current Covid-19 rules dictating the maximum size of gatherings.
Team event competitor and Sport Clutha co-ordinator Craig Gordon praised organisers for making an additional effort to hold the race, despite regulations that have led many other events to be cancelled recently.
"I’m using it for a bit of training for the Coast to Coast this summer, as are quite a few people here.
"I was quite excited, as I think it’s one of the few events on the calendar at the moment, so yeah, it’s great. Scott’s done a fantastic job to keep it going safely for everyone."
He said the goal of any public event was to operate safely and within prevailing rules.
"Covid really didn’t introduce anything new for us — it’s just limited our numbers.
"The only real risk for us was around our briefing, where we asked people to have masks, which they 100% respected.
"Other than that, we’ve got plenty of fresh air, and a little breeze, which will keep our athletes and volunteers super safe."
He said "significant" rain during the preceding 24 hours had made conditions under foot tricky for participants.
"The track’s slippery, and we’ve got a bit more water flowing in the river, but the wet will keep the dust down a bit for the cyclists at least."
Mr Weatherall thanked last year’s winner and current Coast to Coast World Multisport champion Dougal Allan for returning and providing free coaching on Saturday.
"Dougal’s come down again this weekend and held some sessions on Saturday, then he’s had some fun in the team event with his son Flynn today, which is great.
"We’re delighted and humbled to have his ongoing support of our event."
