KIRSTY McWILLIAM'S first taste of triathlon was far from sweet. "I absolutely hated it and vowed I would never do it again," she said, recalling a wet, dreich day spent floundering around Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh.
But, fortunately, McWilliam has a stubborn streak and was willing to give the sport a second chance. Now, four years on from that miserable debut, she is the world junior champion. She won the title in Vancouver last month, and is firmly on track
to become one of Britain's very best.
At 18, she was a little too young for this year's Olympics, but she will still be heading to Beijing next month as part of a new Olympic Ambition 2012 Programme. Athletes who have been identified as British Olympians-in-waiting will be travelling to this year's Games to soak up the atmosphere, watch their idols in action and get that wee bit of extra motivation to spur them on to London in four years' time.
One of the first steps of the build-up to the next Games will come next month when she takes part in the Mazda London Triathlon, one of the most prestigious in the world.
"It will be my first senior standard event (1,500m swim, 40k bike and 10k run], double the distances that we cover as juniors," she said. "I'm really looking forward to it. Then I've also got a couple of races in Strathclyde after I come back from Beijing at the end of August."
McWilliam, who lives in Milton of Campsie, made her first sporting impact as a swimmer. A member of the Bishopbriggs club, she was good enough to medal as a 12-year-old at the Scottish Schools Championships.
But she got bored with ploughing up and down a pool. "I was about 13 when I stopped enjoying swimming," she recalled. "I needed something new, and had dabbled a bit in cross-country so one of my PE teachers suggested I try an aquathon (swimming and running].
"I was then talent-identified for triathlon and took part in my first one when I was 14. It really was awful. It was a typical day of horrible Scottish weather and I had never really cycled before. The whole thing was a bit of a shock, and not a pleasant one. But I was persuaded to try another one, and it went much better."
Coached by John Dargie, McWilliam's future in her sport is carefully mapped out. The initial four-year plan is geared towards London 2012, and the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games will be the perfect follow-up. "The next few years are going to be brilliant," says this super-enthusiast. "I am very lucky to be in my sport at a time when there are so many opportunities for British athletes. I love competing abroad, but it will be so good to have the home support at such big events."
By the next Olympics, McWilliam will be a focus of attention, but she quite enjoyed coming from under the radar to lift the world title in Vancouver. "I wasn't expected to win, so it was an awesome experience," she said.
"I've still got one more year as a junior but, from now on, I'll be competing in a lot of senior events."
While most of the class for London 2012 will be training full-time, McWilliam has opted to combine her sport with academic studies and will begin a biology degree at Stirling University in the autumn.
Juggling a lot of priorities holds no fears. In fact, multi-tasking is what makes her chosen sport so appealing. "I have four training sessions of each discipline every week and I love the variety," she said.
"Cycling was something that I really hated at first, but now I just love it. Triathlon is a booming sport in Britain at the moment, and there are a lot of us in the under-23 bracket who are really good." McWilliam seems destined to be one of the best.
The full article contains 682 words and appears in Scotland On Sunday newspaper.
