Ben is a top-level British Duathlete who has once again been selected for the British Elite team this summer - not bad for a guy in his 40s! He’s obviously still going well. In fact, last year, his 14:41 time for 5k was the fastest in the UK for anyone over the age of 40. He’s also pretty tidy on the bike! He is heading off for the European Duathlon Champs in Portugal in June. Good luck, Ben!
Although born in Bristol, Ben grew up a mile or so from the Saint Piran Cafe (long before it even existed). He went to school in Truro and was a very keen sportsman, mainly playing rugby and cricket. He excelled in the latter, playing over 50 championship cricket matches for the full Cornwall Minor Counties side before injury and change in work brought his cricket career to a premature close. At this point - in his late 20s - he turned to the bike and immediately loved it. That, alongside stunning coastal Cornish runs, and a passion for multi-sport was born.
Over the following decade or so, he progressed from a 40 minute 10k runner to a two-time Cheltenham Half Marathon winner and National Duathlon Champion. A 25 mile TT time of 52:26 proves his cycling pedigree. He has represented GBR at elite level over sprint, standard and middle distance duathlon with a best result over the middle distance of 4th (European Elite Champs in Denmark in 2019) and several top 20 places in the standard and sprint distances. Impressive stuff in a field full of pro triathletes and full-time athletes!
Ben now lives in Cheltenham with his with Rachael and two children (Barney, 14 and Kiki, 12). Ben and Rachael are both teachers, so have plenty of holiday time to spend in Cornwall. In fact, his parents are still in the same home that he grew up in so they are regularly back enjoying their ‘holiday home’ and can often be seen chatting to Ricci over a coffee in the Saint Piran Cafe!
