Ross prepares for sixth Rainbow Cup

NARISSA FRASER

NATIONAL triathlete Jenna Ross will make her sixth appearance at the Rainbow Cup this weekend.

The competition will be held on Saturday in Tobago. It includes a sprint distance triathlon, an Olympic distance triathlon, as well as a 5k run and team relays.

The 33-year-old, who also recently competed in the Caribbean Championship in May, will participate in the individual Olympic triathlon.

Ross, who won the national women’s title and finished fourth among the women last year in two hours, 33 minutes and 39 seconds, says she has been preparing for the cup since January.

In addition to being a triathlete, she balances a 7 am to 4 pm job at Oil Mop Environmental Services Ltd, which she says can become a bit challenging as it relates to time management.

“I train six days a week; I train 10 to 15 hours a week. It’s not a whole lot compared to triathletes up there, but it’s what I can put in,” she said. “Between my commute and my job it’s like a 12-hour-day and then I come home and train on evenings or late night.”

Ross says she also recently fell during a bike ride and was required to get five stitches on her left elbow. While the swelling has gone down and the pain is gone, she says she still has to be careful while participating and that she is hoping for the best.

“It’s been a work in progress, but so far I’ve been cleared by my doctor. The stitches don’t come out until after the event so she said go ahead,” Ross said. “I’ll survive.”

Her interest in triathlons began eight years ago through an interest in charity. She added that completing a triathlon had always been on her bucket list.

“My friend had seen this event where we can do a triathlon and it raised money and it kinda culminated in the Rainbow Cup in 2011,” Ross said. In that year, the money was donated to the TT Oc­cu­pa­tion­al Ther­a­py As­so­ci­a­tion.

In 2018, she participated in the Ironman 70.3 World Championship in South Africa. She described the experience as both a physical and mental battle, adding that she learnt to control her pace among other things.

Ross says she is ready to put her best foot forward on Saturday.