Member of the Greensborough Triathlon Club in Victoria, Blake Barnes began his triathlon journey only two years ago, and in October will don the green and gold at the 2025 World Triathlon Championships.
“I first got into triathlon because some of my friends from my background in running were doing them, and now I’ve been involved for two years,” Barnes said.
“There is an incredible community at the Greensborough Triathlon Club, and this keeps me motivated to be consistent with my training.
“They also make training social and more enjoyable, and race days are amazing as we get to have the whole club there to support each other as a team.”
In 2024, Blake had the opportunity to compete in Townsville for the Multisport World Championships where he produced outstanding results and gained valuable experience ahead of Wollongong in 2025.
“A personal highlight so far in triathlon was the Multisport World Championships last year in Townsville,” he said.
“Being able to compete on the world stage in the green and gold alongside one of my best mates was something special.
“Being able to stand up on the podium with him for the Aquathon was pretty cool.
“What I’ve learned from racing in the Australian Age Group team at Townsville is that I need to be ready for any race scenario.
“Racing with a lot of overseas competition brings in a lot of different race tactics.
“I’ve been preparing for this by trying to compete in a variety of different types of races, not just triathlons, to race against a wide variety of athletes and prepare myself as best I can for the competition at Wollongong.
“To prepare for Wollongong, I have been focusing on the 2XU triathlon season here in Victoria earlier this year.
“I competed in both the draft legal races to practice racing in a pack and non draft racing to practice my Time Trial bike position and pacing.
“My main goals for Wollongong are to be competitive in the standard distance and then be able back it up the next day racing in the sprint distance.
“To prepare for this I’ve been doing a lot of race simulation training sessions and working out what recovery works best for me to be able to train well each day and hopefully perform well in back to back races.
“It will be really special to race at the World Championship in Wollongong later this year.
“To get the chance to compete on home soil, with friends and family able to come and watch, it means a lot to me.
“I’ve put so much into triathlon, and being part of the World Championship here in Australia feels like a huge achievement.
“Racing in front of a home crowd and with everyone else in the Australian team uniform is definitely going to make it even more exciting and memorable.”
The 2025 World Triathlon Championships will take place in Wollongong, Australia from 15 – 19 October 2025.
