SIX Dorset Pentathletes made the trip to Guatemala to compete for their country at the World Championships.

As many as 20 had been picked for the team but 14 ended up staying at home due to costs and concerns over safety in central America.

The same reasons meant that only 30 British athletes travelled to the event when at least 90 would usually go to such a competition.

The championships consisted of a run/swim/run competition with distances comprising 500-1,500m for the run and 50-200m for the swim – distances varied with each age group.

Age groups started at 10-and-under and went up to 60-and-over in the masters, with 10 groups for men and women.

Up to six British athletes took part in each and all of the team that competed had to fund themselves.

Great Britain enjoyed some good results and came away with three team golds and one silver.

In the boys’ 12-and-under, Aurelio Calipa finished fourth and just missed out on bronze by a few seconds. Josh Dreelan was fifth and both were part of the gold medal-winning team.

Jessica Sutton was 12th in the under-14 girls’ group and was part of the team that won the silver medal.

In the boys’ 16-and-under age group there was a fourth place for Bradley Sutton, while Elliot Laville was 12th as the team took gold.

India Cooper finished fifth in the girls’ 16-and-unders, and in the individual medal table, the GB team took two gold, four silver and five bronze medals to claim third overall.

World Tour Events MEMBERS of Dorset Pentath-letes also took part in World Series events in Italy and Germany.

Seven members went to Italy where India Cooper triumphed in the under-16 girls’ race, while Bradley Sutton won the under-16 boys’ event.

In the under-14 girls, Libby Tolley took first with Jessica Sutton sixth, and in the boys’ under-14s Niall Caley was fifth.

There was a sixth place for Jessica Hudson in the girls’ under-12s and Catherine Tolley came home in eighth.

The Dorset club took a 24-strong team to the race in Erding, Germany.

And members excelled again by bringing home seven gold, two silver and three bronze medals.

In the first race of the day, Jake Fisher got off to a flying start to take gold in the boys’ 10-and-under section.

Hudson, Tolley and Elektra Covell were fifth, eighth and 10th respectively in the girls’ under-12s, with Ryan Symington clinching gold and Fred Fisher bronze in the boys’ race.

In the girls’ 14-and-under race, Tolley took gold, Portia Manson was fifth, Sutton sixth, Connie Baker seventh, Lucy Anderson 12th and Poppy Boyden 13th.

There was gold for Bradley Sutton in the boys’ 16-and-unders, while Cooper did likewise in the girls’ event.

Olivia Manson claimed silver, Leanne Symington bronze, Geor-gie Lane was fifth and Daisy Liddle 10th.

In the older age groups, Ryan Flaherty won bronze in the 18-and-unders, Harry Lane had an excellent race to take gold in the junior men, and Emma Fisher finished first in the masters 40-plus category.

Mike Covell picked up silver in the 60-plus group, while Mark Fisher was fifth and Mick Flaherty 10th in the over-50s.

After these results, many Dorset Pentathletes members will be at the top of the world rankings, and the club can claim to be the best in Europe.

Great Britain and Dorset team coach Michael Flaherty said: “This is an excellent achievement by all the athletes, parents and helpers over the biathle season. Once again the team has had an outstanding season and are looking forward to next year’s events and World Championships.”

* The next event on the biathle calendar is the South West Championships at Leweston School on April 12, 2015, with a training camp taking place from April 7-12, also at Leweston School. This is open to all schools.

* The club is also looking for sponsorship, so if anyone is interested in helping Dorset Pentathletes, they should contact Michael Flaherty via flaherty121@aol.com