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Sports

Speedy Kids Race in First Youth Triathlon

Parents, kids and community members gathered around City Park to take part in a triathlon for kids.

For the city's first youth triathlon today, it was the younger kids leading the way to show that, no matter the challenge, San Bruno athletes have endurance.

The first participant to cross the finish line was Brandon Fong, who participated in the 5-year-old to 7-year-old age range. Brandon pushed himself the entire race and made an especially terrific showing during the swimming portion of the triathlon.

"It was amazing. My son Brandon was very excited about this triathlon," said Anson Fong, Brandon's father. "He bikes, swims, and runs, so it was awesome that he was able to put all those activities together. I think this is a very motivational activity for children to do. It's something that they can practice and work toward all year long."

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Thirty children participated in the event, which was organized by the city's .

All told, there were 70 people at the race in  with parents, children and spectators. The children were separated into three different categories based on age.

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Out of all the athletes, 5-year-olds to 7-year-olds swam 25 yards and completed a 1-mile bike ride and a three-quarter mile run; 8-year-olds to 9-year-olds swam 50 yards, biked 2 miles and ran 1 mile; 10-year-olds to 15-year-olds swam 150 yards, biked 2.5 miles and ran 1.5 miles.

The triathlon was the brainchild of Jennie Tucker, a recreation services supervisor. She said the department started planning the event well in advance.

"The first thing was advertising, making sure we got the word out before the summer, so we made sure to inform the schools, community and parents about the triathlon," Tucker said. "You never know if a new event will take off or not so getting the word out there is very important."

All that was left was to plan out the event, where would the kids run, bike and swim, Tucker added.

"After much thought and crunching numbers, we came up with the course for the different age groups," she said.

With the support of the parents, kids, and community, this year's youth triathlon motivated children to be active and healthy and made a good first impression on all who participated.

"It was a success, thankfully," Tucker said.

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