A PENSIONER from Easter Compton is delighted to have achieved her ambition of winning a World Triathlon gold medal.

Competing in the FV65 category, Jane Leslie completely swept away the international opposition in the Grand Final in Edmonton, Canada.

The Thornbury Running Club member has regularly qualified for the World Championships in recent years, but her previous best in the Olympic distance triathlon was fourth.

Leslie has won two Aquathlon World Championship gold medals and also triumphed at the ETU Triathlon European Championships in Kitzbuhel, Austria, in June this year.

She said: “It is something I have always wanted to do and now I’ve done it I’m over the moon.

“The medal ceremony was in front of 200 people so it was a big deal.

“I trained very hard but you never know how you are going to do.”

Leslie finished the swim, her strongest discipline, with a five-minute lead in her category.

The 65-year-old was second fastest on the bike and fourth in the run, while she also had the two quickest transitions of the day with a total time of 2:47:21, over four minutes ahead of her rivals.

She did not realise she had won until 30 minutes after her race when she was told by someone who looked up the result on their phone.

Leslie has since been interviewed on radio and TV and hopes her experience will inspire others of an older generation.

She said: “Old people need to get out there and exercise and don’t think you can’t do it.”

Fellow Thornbury runner Jon Greenwood also took part in the competition, achieving 19th place in the MV60 category.