York Triathlon cancelled (From York Press)

York Triathlon cancelled

9:02am Thursday 14th March 2013 in News By Haydn Lewis, haydn.lewis@thepress.co.uk

HUNDREDS of athletes have been left disappointed with the cancellation of the first York Triathlon.

Organisers of the event, which was due to take place at the sports village at the University of York on April 27, have said it has been called off due to “unforeseen circumstances”. They were unable to go into detail, but hope to be able to stage the event next year.

About 500 people were due to take part, including University of York PhD student Elly McCausland, 24, of Hull Road, who has been raising money for cancer research.

She is one of hundreds of competitors who are being contacted individually by organisers Freebird Events Ltd, which are based in Acomb.

They have all been offered the option of a free transfer into another Freebird race, including events in Skipton and Driffield or have their full entry fee refunded.

Miss McCausland said: “I’m gutted really as I was looking forward to doing a triathlon on my doorstep. It’s my first triathlon and I paid about £50 to take part.

“I have been training and I’m doing it for charity and a lot of people have already sponsored me and given me money. My friends were also going to turn out and cheer me on.

“I am determined to do a triathlon, but it looks like I’ll now have to do the one in Driffield. I don’t know how I’m going to get my bike over there as I don’t have a car.” The York triathlon featured a 400m swim, a 20km cycle ride and a 5km run showcasing the new facilities of the York Sport Village.

Organiser Peter Mathieson, of Freebird, said: “We are absolutely gutted as the event had proved to be extremely popular, attracting entries from across the country and almost reaching capacity with still more than six weeks to go. It was looking like it was going to be an excellent event, but the cancellation is due to circumstances beyond our control.

“At this moment in time it is unlikely we will be able to host the event in 2013. However we fully intend to get a date set for 2014 as soon as possible, this will be announced as soon as it can be confirmed.”