Paul Donno Competes In The 2008 London Triathlon

At 2.55pm on Saturday 9th August local businessman Paul Donno joined sixty other male competitors in the murky waters of Victoria Dock at Excel in East London to await the signal to start the first stage of his first ever triathlon. As the starter horn sounded at 3pm Paul’s goggles broke and as if that weren’t bad enough 500 metres into his 750 metre swim he experienced cramp in his left calf caused by an incorrectly fitted wetsuit.

Paul explains what happened next, “Although I have a reputation as someone who always wants to have all the gear before they embark on a new sport or hobby I had decided to hire a wetsuit for my triathlon as I didn’t think it was something I would get any use from after the event. Unfortunately the one I hired left me with terrible cramp. As I was trying to massage the pain from my calf whilst still swimming I managed to dislodge my timing chip which was strapped to my ankle. I ended up swimming the remaining 250 metres with one arm as my other was clutching my timing chip!

Getting out of the water was a very strange feeling, I felt as though I had been on the beer all night! And I can assure you I hadn’t! Once out of the water I was able to attach the timing chip to my ankle again and make my way through the showers before taking off the wetsuit. My actual swim time was ok at 19:25 but I lost over 6 minutes in the transition stage trying to alleviate the cramp!”

Although the wind and rain did not make for ideal conditions Paul managed the 20 kilometre bike ride in a respectable 45:17 but again he lost vital time in the transition stage spending another 5 minutes trying to sort out his cramp. The final part of the event was a 5 kilometre run which Paul managed in 31:10, taking his overall time to 1:47:21 and his final position over the three events to 1161.

Paul comments, “I was very pleased with my run, it was the part I was least looking forward to and I managed to finish strongly. Crossing the finish line was a great feeling. It made it all worthwhile. I have had a lot of support with this event and I would like to thank everyone who has helped me and all those people who have sponsored me.”

13,000 competitors took part in the London Triathlon over the course of the weekend competing over different distances from the Super Sprint to the Olympic. The London Triathlon is one of the most popular mass sporting events of the year. Paul enjoyed his experience so much and felt it was such a great venue and well organised event that he has already signed up to do it all over again in 2009!

Paul has raised over £1,700 for Round Tables Children’s Wish, having achieved his competition goal of completing the event in under 2 hours he is now keen to meet his fundraising target of £3,000.

You can still sponsor Paul and help him to achieve his fundraising target for Round Table Children’s Wish by donating online at www.justgiving.com/pauldonno1 or phoning Sandra Bentley on 01787 281688 with your pledge.