Andrew Christy aims to make up for lost time

The 19-year-old looked set for a 2012 to remember as he finished with a bronze medal at the British Junior Championships in June.

This had Christy dreaming of a trip to New Zealand for the Junior World Triathlon Championships, only for injury to strike in August as he broke his collar bone.

The Edinburgh Road Club member has had a plate inserted and insists he is on the mend, with just his swimming still less than 100 per cent. Christy is determined to make up for missed opportunities next year.

“My season was looking like it was going to be pretty good as I came third in the British Juniors and that gave me a lot of confidence,” said Christy. “I felt I had an outside chance of making it to the Worlds, but then in a race in the Czech Republic someone fell in front of me and I went down and broke my collar bone.

“That put an early end to my season which was disappointing because I was feeling good and there were plenty of good competitions to look forward to.

“But it has happened now and I just have to move on. I am really looking forward to doing the Olympic distance triathlons for the first time and I’m confident my collar bone won’t affect me at all as I try and make an impact on the senior guys.”

With Alistair and Jonathan Brownlee winning London 2012 triathlon gold and bronze respectively, the Edinburgh University student admits their success has whetted his appetite for Rio in four years time.

“I caught pretty much all of the Olympics and it was great for this country to have some success in the triathlon,” he added. “It really got me thinking about Rio and it makes you want it more.”

n Bank of Scotland Local Heroes, in partnership with SportsAid, has supported 170 of Scotland’s most talented developing athletes on their journey towards London 2012. As part of Bank of Scotland’s commitment to leaving a sporting legacy, the programme will continue in 2013. Follow future stars at facebook.com/bankofscotlandlocalheroes