A part of the history of the Triathlon, Jackie Fairweather, dies

The triathlon community suffers a great loss with the passing of Jackie Fairweather (Nee Gallagher) yesterday Monday at the 46 years of age.

 

 

ITU World Champion, Hall of Fame nominee, board member, high performance manager, coach and sports commentator, Fairweather's contribution to triathlon has been of unimaginable value.

 

Fairweather's road in triathlon started at 1992. At that time I was a runner and had completed a master's degree in exercise physiology. It was then when he and his partner Rina Hill met our sport. In 1992 they moved to Gold Coast to train full time.

The Australian won an ITU World Championship in 1996 in Cleveland, and three silver medals in 1995, 1997 and 1999, becoming known for her pedestrian fitness.

 

The last test in an ITU World Cup in which Fairweather competed was Montreal in 1999. He did not participate in the Sydney Olympics and decided to change course: as he applied for the position of Coach of the Australian Triathlon Institute

 

Rather than acting as a conventional coach, Fairweather served as a high-performance manager and technical director to push the Australian triathlon to a new stage.

 

During his retirement from the triathlon, Fairweather dedicated himself to the marathon, one of his passions. The double ITU World Champion Karen Smyers helped her in her beginnings, when she ran the Boston Marathon in 2001, in which she made a time of 2: 35.46, qualifying for the Commonwealth Games.

 

At 2002, days after finishing the first AIS camp in France, Fairweather won bronze at the Manchester event.

 

Fairweather was famous for her analytical approach to sport and her tenacity in trying different things. He helped establish the format of the Sub23 and Youth World Championships, with a clear age division and a sprint distance for the youth.

 

He was also present at the creation of a new era of the ITU, with webcasts, airplay in an 2004 race, and as a commentator in the next two seasons.

 

Fairweather was the second athlete to serve on the ITU executive board, where she held her position from 2004 to 2008. Fairweather worked at the Australian Institute of Sport as a Sports Consultant since 2005, and married Olympic gold-winning goalkeeper Simon Fairweather.

 

Photo: ITU