Launched in 2018, the Zwift Academy Tri Team was forced (along with everything else), to take a sabbatical in 2020, due to you-know-what.
However, with racing (fingers crossed) back and the IRONMAN World Championship (more crossed fingers) set to take place in October 2021, the program is back for its third incarnation.
That’s great news for one British athlete, Rebecca Duxbury, who has today been named as one of the six athletes on perhaps the best-supported age-group triathlon team in the world. Rebecca will follow in the footsteps of Bex Rimmington (2018) and Ruth Astle / Paul Lunn (2019) as British representation on the team.
Duxbury pretty much arrived in the sport and was winning from the start – fastest AG athlete overall at the 2019 ITU Long Distance Triathlon Champs, second AG’er at 70.3 Staffordshire 2019 (coincidentally, Bex Rimmington was third!), second to Lucy Gossage at the 2019 Long Course Weekend Wales and and age-group winner at IRONMAN Wales 2019 (which, I think, should mean that her Kona slot is already secured).
She certainly was noticed by Lucy Gossage at the LCW event, “I was super impressed with the performance of the young pharmacist Rebecca Duxbury who finished second (definitely one to watch in my book)”, and while 2020 was all but wiped out, Rebecca did take the opportunity to race, and win, at the Outlaw X.
A great opportunity for Rebecca to build on what has been a very impressive start to her triathlon career. Best wishes to her, and congratulations to all six of the athletes selected.
INTRODUCING THE ZWIFT ACADEMY TRI TEAM FOR 2021
Six athletes from around the world make up this year’s team as they prepare for the IRONMAN World Championship in Kona
Zwift, the online global fitness platform, has today announced the six members of the Zwift Academy Tri Team 2021. Over 134,000 people signed up for Zwift Academy. All those that completed the program’s 10 workouts and 2 bike and run races, graduated with a chance to make the final team selection process with team selection. The final six members were selected based on their Zwift Academy performance, past race results and personality.
Originating from four different continents, the Zwift Academy Tri Team for 2021 is:
- Eric Engel, USA. Eric is a digital marketer in Wisconsin and has been hooked on triathlon since university.
- Kristen Yax, USA. Kristen comes from Oregon where she is a psychology professor.
- Rebecca Duxbury, UK. A former competitive hockey player, Rebecca calls Oxfordshire home and is a full-time pharmacist.
- Lukas Bosmans, Belgium. Lukas is a police detective, loves running and has won several beer miles.
- Kangsub Song, South Korea. Kangsub is a computer programmer and network engineer. He is a committed Zwifter with level 50 on the bike and level 21 on the treadmill.
- Vanessa Murray, Australia. Vanessa is from New Zealand but calls Melbourne home and spends her time coaching new triathletes.
The team will benefit from incredible support from some of the sport’s best-known brands as they build towards the IRONMAN World Championships in Kona. Specialized will be supplying the team with bikes, race kits, shoes, helmets, and money-can’t-buy performance experiences.
Wahoo is providing the full Wahoo ecosystem. WHOOP joins as the performance and recovery partner. Each team member will be receiving eyewear and swim apparel from ROKA with Science in Sport providing the team’s sport nutrition and consultations. Returning as Zwift Academy Tri team mentors and ensuring the team get invaluable guidance are Tim Don and Sarah True.
Follow the highs and lows of the Zwift Academy Tri team’s journey as the team balance working, being parents and the other challenges life throws at them while being an amateur athlete. 2021 will hopefully see races start to come back, with some of the team lining up for a race for the first time in over a year. Keeping up the momentum of training in a year without competition has been challenging, some of team have already qualified for Kona and will need to find that form again. Others are yet to qualify and will be looking to secure a lot in a year where the calendar is anything from certain.
To learn more about the team and to stay up to date with their progress head here.
