Leah de Freitas, the triathlon star

Leah de Freitas loves sports.

When she was four, she did her first "babyathlon,'' which is a triathlon for toddlers. In a triathlon, the athlete has to do three different events, usually swimming, riding and running.

At age five, she did her first duathlon (riding and running), and she did a triathlon at age six.

Leah is now nine, and she is more and more determined to compete in the big leagues. She's already competed in four triathlons and a few other duathlons.

Leah also knows exactly what's required to excel at her sport.

“I find I’m not that good at bike riding (when doing triathlons). I find I’m better at swimming and running.

“A triathlon is not something you cannot train for. You have to be training a good bit to do certain runs,” she said.

Her first coach was her dad, Kieran de Freitas who also competes in triathlons. So, it’s no surprise he was her inspiration to get involved in the sport.

She now trains with Rainbow Warriors Triathlon Club.

“We trained at Jackson Square then did we training at the Queen’s Park Savannah. But now we can’t really do training anymore (because of covid19).”

Leah is also testing her athletic skills by participating in this year’s Fusion Adventure Races. Participants must complete seven athletic missions in seven months.

The youngest female participant in this year’s event, Leah placed 48th out of 128 in that category in one of the race missions in April.

The feat wasn’t all easy as it included some tough hiking.

“The fusion race I did, the last one I did I found it was extremely hard and that’s the hardest one I did out of all.”

But she’s happy because the race organisers recently recognised her as a “breakthrough female” competing in the event.

Leah also tried her hand at gymnastics. She started at age two, but she didn't particularly like it, so now she focuses on triathlons.

“I don’t really do gymnastics anymore. I used to do both gymnastics and triathlons, but I’ve found lately that gymnastics was getting very competitive.

“I like to be competitive, but I think gymnastics just wasn’t my thing anymore.”

She however misses doing gymnastics with her cousin who is eager for to get back in the sport so they can train together. Her cousin recently got a foam pit and trampoline to practice her gymnastics skills.

Leah says other children should get involved in sports because it will help them get good exercise and contribute to their health and wellness.

With the new restrictions in place to help prevent the spread of covid19, Leah knows its better to stay indoors right now rather than being outdoors and playing sports.

So, these days you can find her spending time at her Glencoe home with her two brothers.

“I like to colour sometimes. My aunty recently gave me some gel pens and a colouring book, so I’ve been using that whenever I have free time.”

A student at Dunross Preparatory School, she’s also been continuing her online learning which she said has taught her patience.

For now, she is preparing to take part in the StudentUnited Virtual Race 2021 which is a virtual 5K in June.

She also has eyes on representing TT in the Olympics in the future.

Leah’s dad couldn’t be prouder that Leah loves triathlons like him.

“It’s good to see her doing it. Our philosophy is that children should be balanced by having sports and academics.

“It’s something she likes to do so we don’t really have to push her. We encourage all our children to be active because it’s healthy for them to be active and they get to make friends,” he said.