Sarah Terry from Long Bennington finishes fourth in the European Duathlon Championship in Poland

A Long Bennington athlete defied injuries to finish fourth in her category on her European Duathlon Championship debut in Poland.

Sarah Terry's preparations for the event in Rumia were hampered by the effects of a knee injury she's been carrying since last September.

She tore her meniscus during a race, restricting her training, and in compensating for that injury, developed Piriformis Syndrome, the inflammation of a buttock muscle.

But, determined to compete, the 48-year-old battled on through the pain barrier and boarded the plane to Poland.

Entering the 45-49 age group, she completed the sprint distance - 5k run, 20k bike, 2.5k run - in 1hr 05min 56sec.

She confirmed her fitness a week earlier by winning a qualifying race at Mallory Park in Leicester for the 2026 Euros.

"That gave me the confidence to go to Poland because I was thinking I'd have to pull out," said Terry.

"It was brilliant. It was my first European Championships and I met so many amazing people there.

"I was really happy that I actually got to go.

"If anything, I came back and thought, 'Gosh, I want to do better'. It makes me want to do it more."

Terry is now hoping that her injuries will ease and allow her to increase the training levels.

She added: "I’m just hoping my injuries will get better and then I can start to put in some more training.

"I would never use my injuries as an excuse, and I don’t think they held me back, but I was just annoyed that in T2 (the second transition) I made a mistake that cost me quite a lot of time.

"Apart from that, I’m really pleased I came fourth.

"I’d like to have done better but I’m still very happy.

"It’s the training that’s been a problem.

"I can’t do the training I want to do. That’s what I find frustrating.

"I don’t feel I can do enough running, so I can’t improve. That’s what’s hard about it.

"Working around it, I have to manage the pain, but then I’m also grateful I can still do some training.

"It is holding me back from the training but I’m doing what I can and I will keep going.

"I’m not a quitter, so I will carry on until I physically can’t do it, and that’s just me.”

Terry, who turns 49 next month, is looking forward to the World Duathlon Championships in Spain in June.

She has also qualified for the World Triathlon Championships in Australia in October but is yet to confirm whether she will compete due to the significant costs involved.