( OH WOW )
CHARLOTTE MCSHANE
Analee Matthews gets to know one of Australia ’ s most promising triathletes .
wenty six-year-old Charlotte
T McShane is a full time triathlete ,
vying for a spot on the Australian Commonwealth Games team , which is being held on the Gold Coast next year .
At 158cm tall , this Scottish-born pocket rocket finished a mixed year of results that saw her ranked 8th in the World Triathlon Series , which is her highest ranking to date .
‘ 2016 was a tough year ’, explains the striking redhead . ‘ I achieved two of my three goals for the year but missed out on the big one .’
‘ The big one ’ that Charlotte refers to was the qualifying race for the Olympics . And in triathlon – like many sports – it doesn ’ t get much bigger than that !
‘ As an athlete you often focus on setbacks rather than stepping back and appreciating what you have done . When I arrived back in Australia , I had a lot of people congratulating me for my season , which confused me . I ’ d missed out on the most important race of the year , so as far as I was concerned , it was largely a failure . But , with some time away from training , racing and the triathlon world I started to realise that those people were congratulating me for how I made the most of the situation I was in ; and now , every day , I am a little more proud of my results and the many small victories I ’ d temporarily forgotten .’
Charlotte is just one member of an exceptionally sporty family . Her father , Frank McShane is a highly experienced triathlon and ironman competitor who encouraged his children in several disciplines including swimming , biking and cross-country running .
‘ Today , at age 58 , my father is still competing in triathlon ( and is quite successful in his age group ), and he also does long distance running events . Two of my sisters , Mhairi and Colette also compete in triathlons and other running events , but their main focus is on running their own fitness centres . Colette ( aka ‘ The HIIT Mum ’) is also the founder of a workout app called PT IN MY POCKET and a fitness subscription box called THE HIIT BOX .
‘ I did my first triathlon ( a short kid ’ s course ) when I was around eight years old . I would follow my older sisters and father across the country when they ’ d race . And most times I ’ d do the kid ’ s courses that were held alongside the adult ’ s event . It ’ s no surprise I fell in love with the sport after starting at such a young age ! These days , I particularly love the diversity of triathlon – it never gets boring because there ’ s always something you can work on ; you can really mix up your training when you ’ ve got three sports to choose from !’
By the time she was 20 years old , Charlotte had already competed in ten half-ironman events . In 2013 Charlotte scored her first major win , taking first place in the Under 23 ’ s ITU World Triathlon Championships . ‘ It was a goal I ’ d be working towards for quite a few years and I ’ d had some setbacks along the way so it will always be one of my most treasured races ,’ she explains .
‘ This year we have the opportunity to automatically qualify for the Australian team for next year ’ s Commonwealth Games , so my main aim at the moment is to qualify for that .
Photo : Felix Sanchez
Photo : Felix Sanchez
6 OH ! MAGAZINE ( FEBRUARY 2017 )