ANNE Dockery continues to push back the boundaries and prove that age is no barrier to achieving sporting success.
The Bristol & West AC runner (pictured below) has recently taken up cycling to complement her running ambitions so it was a natural to progression to dabble at the duathlon and its run-bike-run format.
So last weekend Dockery took herself to Bilbao, northern Spain, for the European Duathlon Championships and needless to say she acquitted herself very well indeed.
“I managed to grab a bronze medal,” said Dockery, who was competing in the masters’ over 70s age group.
“It was nice considering I missed bronze in the Worlds sprint as I ran an extra lap! This was my toughest race ever as there was a very long steep hill and we had to go up it twice.
“I have been working on improving my bike skills for the past few months but I have a lot more improving to do! Did fine on the runs which I loved.”
Many runners have discovered the benefits of combining cycling with running as a means to improve fitness, aid recovery and avoid injury so it will be interesting to follow Dockery’s progress this winter.
But she will clearly be back to the duathlon very soon.
“There was a marvelous supportive atmosphere out there,” added Dockery.