What started as a competition with her partner quickly turned into a newfound passion with Bella Kolinac’s love for triathlon shining through, recently crowned the Female Standard Distance Triathlon State Champion in the 20-24 age group for the 2025/26 South Australian season.
Competing in her first time Sid James Victor Harbor Triathlon back in March, Kolinac had to take a slightly different approach to training compared to her normal routine.
“I haven’t actually raced any Olympic distance or standard distance yet, so that was my first time. Training wise I was just trying to get that short speed aspect of it. My coach was implementing short speed sessions to get me ready.”
Despite the odds being stacked against her, having not raced this distance before and suffering from illness the day earlier, Kolinac’s fighting spirit shone through.
“Race day came along and I wasn’t feeling well and wasn’t sure if I was going to race. But that morning, I was feeling alright and carried on.
“I was so impressed with my effort and happy to come away with the win for my age group which was nice.”
Victor Harbor Triathlon has been a long-standing event in the South Australian calendar and is one of the most picturesque courses in the state, hugging the coastline and this year it had a slightly different look and feel thanks to the new bike course.
“I was shocked. It was a very hard race. I think the turns on the bike, I definitely wasn’t used to and is something I’ll need to practice in the future. The swim was definitely character building. It was a completely different kind of swim and I loved it,” she said.
And with her first longer form experience under her belt, Kolinac already has her sights set on next season. Carving out time in her calendar to train, prepare and race in as many events as she can – such is her hunger and drive to get better and keep pushing.
“I’m super keen and I just want to beat some PB’s. I want to try and get closer to a 1 hour on the sprint and for the middle distance maybe 2 hours which is massive.”
“But it’s a massive goal and it’s what I’m looking forward to next season. And maybe race the open, that will be a nice challenge for me.”
Although personal bests are one aspect of the sport Kolinac thrives on. It’s also much more than that, noting the importance of the atmosphere in making events special.
“I love the atmosphere. The training is 100% what makes it but I think on the actual race day watching everyone come together and doing what they love is amazing. It’s a different sort of euphoric feeling,” she said.
That atmosphere also helps to spur her on when the chips are down and feeling like there’s not much to give.
“I just dig really deep and think of my why. In the moment ‘why’ I’m doing it. And my ‘why’ is to challenge myself and prove that I can do what I want to do. I just tell myself you don’t have long to go and keep pushing. It’s just a bit of a mental chat to myself,” she said.
From learning to ride a bike, to restarting swimming and igniting her competitive juices, triathlon has been a source of great joy for Kolinac who credits her partner’s ongoing support albeit no longer her training buddy to her continued involvement and success in the sport.
“I’ve taken the fun out of it now, so he doesn’t race me anymore he doesn’t want to train with me because I love it too much.” But he’s my biggest supporter and watches all the races.”
