A TRIATHLETE from Daglingworth has described his horrific experience in witnessing the death of a fellow competitor at the Bala Middle Distance Triathlon in North Wales earlier this month.

The tragic triathlete was named as Daniel Cavanagh, a 40-year-old maths teacher and father of two who had competed in 22 marathons.

Steve Yates, 47 – a former British age group champion and world silver medallist – was 11 miles into the bike leg of the race when he was told to dismount by race officials due to a reported incident further along the track.

“As we got to the last of the big climbs, we got stopped at the top by a marshal telling us to get off our bikes,” he said.

“We had no idea what was going on but could see the air ambulance 200 metres down the road.

“We were some of the first past the incident and had to walk past where he was with medics to get back to the start of the race.

“It was a dreadful experience. I’d never seen a dead body before.

“Like the rest of us, this guy got up in the morning to complete a triathlon; his brother was in the same race.

“We were all deeply shocked by the tragedy and returned to the race start in a large group where we collected our kit and slowly departed home.

“He had no record of any health or medical condition and was fit as a flea by all accounts.

“It is believed he died from a massive and sudden heart attack.”

The Bala Triathlon not only doubled as the British Championships but was also a qualifier for the European Championships.

The swimming leg of the triathlon had been shortened from 1.9km to just one kilometre before the start of the race due to low water temperatures.

“The water was bitterly cold,” explained Yates.

“Whether that played any part, I wouldn’t want to speculate.

“When you completed the swim with the course as it was, you immediately went into a ten-mile uphill cycling climb, so it was tough going.

“There was a lot of concern for the water part; 80 per cent of triathlon fatalities happen in the water.

“They will probably do a thorough analysis of the event at Bala but I’m sure they met the requirements as it’s a well-organised event.”

Yates put the harrowing experience of Bala behind him last week, however, and won his age group by more than 15 minutes at the DB Max Titan Half Ironman race in Wales.

He finished fourth overall in a field of 250 competitors, completing the course in an impressive time of 5hr 07sec.

“I'm delighted with the result, particularly as it was a really strong field,” said Yates.

“Before the race started we were all reminded of the tragic events at Bala by the race organiser, so everyone was really happy to have been racing hard again.

“I'm really pleased to have had such a good race and result after the sadness of Bala.”