Teenage Great Britain triathlete Natalie Barnard opened her competitive season at the National Duathlon Championships in Edinburgh. The 19-year-old, who is now based at Loughborough, used the race as a preparation for the British Triathlon Championships i

Teenage Great Britain triathlete Natalie Barnard opened her competitive season at the National Duathlon Championships in Edinburgh.

The 19-year-old, who is now based at Loughborough, used the race as a preparation for the British Triathlon Championships in Llanelli.

Natalie (right) ran strongly in the first part of the race and a slick transition onto the bike saw her poised in third.

Her strongest phase of this race was to be the challenging cycle course, which featured punishing hill climbs and fast twisting downhill sections. But severe cramp set in at the halfway mark, causing her to dismount.

She got back on the bike and, while she was unable to capitalise on her strengths, Natalie fought back to record the fastest last run and consolidate third place overall.

Faye, her 16-year-old younger sister, was competing in Manchester in the finals of the National Biathlon Championships.

She is a national standard swimmer who has only recently turned her priorities to follow her sister into the multi-disciplined sports of biathlon and triathlon.

Faye swam strongly to achieve third place in that section and went on to run confidently to retain a top 10 national finish.

She was rewarded with a team gold for the emerging Hatfield Swimming Club biathlon team.

Faye joins her sister in Llanelli for her first major triathlon.