South African triathlete Richard Murray enjoyed an amazing comeback following a broken collarbone sustained eight-weeks ago in a cycling crash, winning his first senior world title at the weekend in Spain.
Murray finished the 10km run, 40km cycle and 5km run event in 1 hour, 42 minutes and 18 seconds on Sunday to clinch the ITU Duathlon world title in Avile.
His preparations ahead of the 2016 Olympics in Rio have not been ideal, with a crash in the cycling portion of the WTS Gold Coast in April stunting his work to be ready for the summer games in August.
The broken collarbone required surgery, with a plate and screws used to fix the breaks in his shoulder. Since the successful operation, Murray has been determined to recover and regain his full fitness after the incident in Australia.
With his body able to cope well with the cycling and running, the former junior duathlon world champion decided to participate in his first duathlon event in six years.
Speaking to the media after his title win, the humble Murray admitted that he was fearful before the event, but pleased with how the race went.
“This is my first senior world title, kind of surreal. I could not be happier, not only with the title, but with the way my body responded. I am really stoked,” Murray said, according to IOL.
“Now it is onwards and upwards from here, but first thing tomorrow I will be in the swimming pool working on the strokes,” he added.
“My legs felt a bit stiff after the first run and I wasn’t sure what to expect from the cycle, never mind the last 5km run, but I must say the body responded really well on the bike,” Murray said.
“We were a group of some eight guys who really worked well together to get a gap to the rest of the field. Coming off the bike I belted that first kilometre to see what happens. I got a solid lead and just kept going,” he admitted.
Murray will continue preparing for the Olympics by competing and training in Europe, according to TimesLive. Rio will be the South African athlete’s second games.
