A KEIGHLEY triathlete is “over the moon” after being selected to represent Great Britain in the European Under 23 triathlon championships in Olsztyn, Poland, this weekend.

“It’s my first time going to a major championship, so I’m absolutely over the moon with the achievement,” said Jimmy Lund, 22, from Keighley. “It’s been six years in the making, so hopefully I’ll go there and get a result.

Jimmy, who has qualified for European Cups before with Team GB is excited to get to compete at the European Championships and he said it is only one of two championship events in a year, which also includes the World Championships.

Jimmy estimates there will be 70 to 90 competitors in the European Championships semi-final on Friday.

He is aiming to finish in the top half of the sprint event, which includes 300 metres of swimming, eight kilometres on cycling and a a two-kilometre run, so he can compete in the ‘A final’ on Saturday.

Jimmy said he spent last season generating as much experience as possible and this year he is concentrating on his performances.

“This year will be my last time to qualify for this under 23s, so it would be good to go out on a high.”

And so far, Jimmy, who trains in Loughborough at the Loughborough Triathlon Performance Centre, is doing very well this season.

He returned from a three-week training camp in Portugal with the GB squad at the end of April and started the race season on May 2 with a third place in the final of the BUCS Sprint Triathlon.

His second race of the season was the British Triathlon Super Series race in Llanelli, South Wales, on Saturday which was the qualifying race for the European Under 23 Championships in Poland.

“Getting third place was quite a good send off and then I went to Wales and got a decent result (12th), which put me in a position to qualify for these championships.

“I just have to keep calm and enjoy myself at my first championships.”

Jimmy, who has been doing triathlon for six years, was a very successful swimmer as a youth.

In his age seven and eight season, Jimmy said: “I started off as a national standard swimmer.

He then progressed to running as a teenager, and specialised in fell and mountain running, and Jimmy said he also represented Great Britain at a Junior Worlds mountain running at age 16.

And while Jimmy said that swimming is “definitely his strongest” triathlon discipline, years of training has taken its toll.

“I’ve taken to cycling and it’s my favourite now . It really enjoy it at the moment.

“When I was training with Great Britain in Portugal for three weeks, it was really nice to explore areas around south Portugal on the bike.”

Jimmy said he is prepared for a long season of triathlon competition, which runs until November.

He said: “You will then get two to three weeks off and start pre-season for triathlon in December and this runs until April.

After this weekend’s European Championships, Jimmy is is then planning to race at the Europe Triathlon Cup in Coimbra, Portugal, on June 11.