After clinching a bronze medal in Abu Dhabi last year, BGS Head of Swimming, Mr Castro, made an impressive return to the World Triathlon Championships in Pontevedra, Spain to take first place in the 35-39 Standard Age Group category on Sunday 24th September.   

Mr Castro finished with a time of 02:01:00, completing the fastest swim of the age category and the second fastest bike. His swim was the fastest overall by any age-group competitor by 31 seconds, and over a minute faster than anyone else in the 35-39 category. This outstanding performance placed him in an impressive second position overall, surpassing over 1,100 competitors across all age groups. You can view the full breakdown of the race times here. 

With this victory, Mr Castro has now amassed an impressive collection of 15 elite triathlon podium finishes, which includes an astonishing eight gold medals. This result also means that Mr Castro gains an automatic qualifying space for the World Championships in 2024, alongside his qualification for the European Championships in 2024.

Reflecting on his performance, Mr Castro said: “It’s a great feeling to be back on the top step of the podium. It’s a goal I set for myself at the start of the year, and it’s brilliant to know that all of the early morning and late evening training sessions have paid off. I was able to put together a really good race, coming down a twisty mountain at 45 mph was particularly scary! The run was through the old city centre with lots of narrow streets and the crowd made it a fantastic atmosphere to keep me going to the finish.”

BGS is privileged to have such an inspiring athlete in our community. Keep up to date with Mr Castro's results here.