Penticton乌鸦传媒檚 Jeff Symonds and Jen Annett earned matching eighth-place finishes in the Long Course World Championships Sunday.
It wasn乌鸦传媒檛 what they were looking for in the International Triathlon Union , but they are taking it with a smile.
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乌鸦传媒淚 just hung in there, but yeah it was good,乌鸦传媒� said Symonds, who completed the three-kilometre swim, 120-km bike and 30-km run in five hours 37 minutes eight seconds and had the fifth fastest run at 1:52:15. 乌鸦传媒淭o have a top eight in the world coming off all that (season struggles), I乌鸦传媒檓 pretty stoked. This is going to set me up well for down the road.
乌鸦传媒淚t just means a lot because life just kind of sucked when you put everything into a triathlon and you swing for the fences and you kind of strike out,乌鸦传媒� he continued. 乌鸦传媒淚 had to scrap for every little inch. It wasn乌鸦传媒檛 my ultimate best, but it was my best effort. Glad that (announcer) Steve King, my coach Jasper (Blake), my girlfriend Ashley (Wiles) that is out there that kind of gave me the inspiration. That positive energy when I needed it. And my parents too and everyone in Penticton.乌鸦传媒�
Symonds said he worked it to the finish line and that 乌鸦传媒渋t got ugly.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淚 got really ugly,乌鸦传媒� said Symonds, who relaxed the rest of the day catching the season finale of Game of Thrones, which he said was 乌鸦传媒済oing to be sweet.乌鸦传媒�
Next up for Symonds is an event in Santa Clara, Calif.
Annett finished the race in 6:10:44. She completed the 3-km swim in 45:23, putting her in 14th. She was fifth overall in the 120-km bike, which took her 3:12:28 to complete and had the 10th fastest run in 2:09:40.
乌鸦传媒淚 wished I placed a little better,乌鸦传媒� said Annett, who grew up in Kelowna. 乌鸦传媒淭he run hurt. The run always hurts. It was a tough field. I did the best I could do and that乌鸦传媒檚 all that matters.乌鸦传媒�
Annett said 乌鸦传媒渢hat was a crazy women乌鸦传媒檚 field.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淧robably the toughest I have ever competed in,乌鸦传媒� she continued. 乌鸦传媒淎ll I could do is put it all out there and hope for the best.乌鸦传媒�
Annett said she beat athletes she lost to in the past, adding she isn乌鸦传媒檛 sure if she had a better day or it was them having a bad day or her fitness level improving. In a field featuring world champions, Annett didn乌鸦传媒檛 feel she could have run any harder.
Annett will now get ready for the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga, Tenn. on Sept. 9.
