Agegroup Multisport Podcast (Triathlon,Duathlon,Aquabike,Aquathlon) · AMP

Episode 125 With GB Agegrouper & Welsh Triathlon Chairman Martin Kitchener

·1 hr 24 min·5 clips

Martin says he discovered a craft-load pathway last year and was told he might be close to representing Great Britain.

1. Agegroup Multisport Podcast Episode 125 follows Martin Kitchener’s path through triathlon, duathlon, aquabike, and aquathlon. 2. Martin Kitchener, based in Cardiff and originally from Birmingham, is the guest, and Welsh Triathlon chair is one of the roles that shapes his perspective. 3. The episode asks how a late-starting age grouper reached Great Britain representation and why the sport matters beyond elite results. 4. Martin says he played football and cricket at a comprehensive school and spent time in the Sea Scouts canoeing on Birmingham canals. 5. He explains that triathlon was not on his radar as a child and first appeared to him through triathlete boys at college in Aberystwyth. 6. Martin argues that triathlon is often mistaken for Ironman alone, even though it includes many distances and combinations. 7. He says British Triathlon is better than World Triathlon at promoting “swim, bike, run,” while World Triathlon kept the word triathlon in its name. 8. After college he played squash, then moved to America in 1999 for eight years and began playing golf from scratch. 9. He says family life reduced golf time, and his wife describes his switch to running as a replacement for golf. 10. He completed the San Francisco Marathon while living in California and describes it as hilly. 11. Back in Cardiff, a pub conversation led to a sprint triathlon with three or four months of training, hybrid bikes, and borrowed wetsuits. 12. Martin says the first triathlon was in 2011, and the group that started together has since stopped racing except for him. 13. He moved from sprint events to standard distance, then to a half Ironman in Fishguard, which he says was very tough. 14. He recalls finishing near the back at Fishguard and losing his wetsuit from transition after the race. 15. A work placement in Oxford gave him access to the university triathlon club, even though he was never a club member. 16. He says that period helped him sign up for Ironman Bolton and later represent Oxford in the varsity at Eaton Dorney against Cambridge. 17. Martin says the sport became important during a difficult period because it gave him goals, structure, and opportunities for achievement. 18. He explains that becoming chair of Welsh Triathlon was not planned, but a friend on the board asked him to step in when the previous chair left. 19. He says the Welsh Triathlon board and the boards in Scotland and England are all volunteer-led, with only small staff teams supporting them. 20. He says listeners who like multisport, club volunteers, Welsh sport policy, and late age-group pathways will get the most from the episode, while people who want only elite racing coverage may skip it.

As heard by us

A grounded club room conversation about age group multisport and the work that keeps it going.

This face to face conversation is less about polish than about the practical work behind age group multisport: volunteers, clubs, and the governing body role that keeps things moving.

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Why you'd press play

A warm, face-to-face chat on age-group triathlon, Welsh Triathlon, and why clubs and volunteers still matter.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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