Ketton Panthers Triathlon Club compete in the final round of the East Midlands series

Ketton Panthers Triathlon Club enjoyed a successful weekend on the East Midlands stage.

They had athletes competing in the final round of the East Midlands series while several members were representing the regional squad at Mallory Park.

Panthers made up a third of the East Midlands squad competing against the very best young triathletes from all around the country.

Many of the club's triathletes also finished in the top 10 of their categories at the Darley Moor race circuit in Ashbourne, Derbyshire.

In TriStar Three (13-14 years), Jasper Neal finished seventh in the open category.

Joe Cripps ended the TriStar Two (11-12 years) season with a podium finish, taking second spot, while Jack Watson was 13th and Cooper Sharp 17th.

In the TriStar One (9-10 years) open, a hotly contested race saw Panthers close out the top 10 with Alexander Watson seventh, Daniel Goddard eighth, Henry Raitt ninth and Louis Thompson tenth.

There were further top 10 finishes for Astrid Arrichiello (fourth), Gracie Dawson (fifth) and Lily Raitt (10th) in the Tri Start females category.

Panthers were also racing over the weekend for the East Midlands squads at the Inter-Regional Championships held at the Mallory Park race circuit in Leicestershire.

They were racing against the best young triathletes from England, Wales, Scotland and the Channel Islands.

A third of the 18-strong East Midlands squad representing Northamptonshire, Leicestershire, Rutland, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire were from the Ketton club.

As at the Olympics, the youngsters competed individually and in mixed relays.

Two stand-out performers were siblings Sophie and Ben Alliston who qualified from their heats to race in the A finals.

Sophie's top 10 finish - in her first year in the age group - was one of the team's best results of the weekend and Ben improved in each area from the heats to come in 18th.

Two other athletes competing in the first year of their age range were Benjamin Goddard in TriStar Two and Edith Kaberry in TriStar Three.

Their strong performances in the B finals saw them come home 16th and 19th while gaining vital experience to attack the race next year.

Aubrey Elmer's strong bike and run legs saw him finish his TriStar Three B final in 10th place.

The next day saw the athletes compete in the Transition Challenge - a test of their ability to move through the disciplines of swim, bike and run.

Panther Eleni Williams joined the team for the Sunday racing.

All the Panthers showed off the skills that they learn on a Friday at tri-training as each age group had more than 50 athletes in both the boys and girls races.

Sophie came ninth in TriStar Three Girls and Edith 35th while Eleni was 37th in TriStar Two Girls.

Benjamin stopped the clock in 19th in TriStar Two boys and those four will aim to qualify again next year.

Ben and Aubrey will be too old but this knowledge saw both boys fight hard on their final day.

Ben was 14th while Aubrey pushed too hard and crashed his bike but still finished an impressive 36th.

The medics ruled Aubrey out of the team relay so Benjamin Goddard stepped up to race against boys three years older than him on the TriStar Three boys leg, his determination and performance in the relay deserve particular mention.

Eleni Williams' fresh legs also featured in a relay team as the TriStar Two girl.

After the relays, 48 legs and 32 transitions across the four East Midlands teams, the region finished in ninth place out of 13 overall.