Ed Hardy had been in his new role as chairman of Tewkesbury Triathlon Club for only a week when The Local Answer called.

The 32-year-old has been a member of the club for some four years and is certainly impressed by what he has seen.

“We’re one of the more successful clubs around,” he said. “We’re in a good place at the moment so the aim is just to keep the club on their current path.”

The club were formed in 1990 in an era when triathlon was not nearly as popular as it is today.

Now the club have some 110 members who are keen to take on the multi discipline sport of swimming, cycling and running.

The club use Tewkesbury Leisure Centre as their base. That’s where the swimming sessions take place every Saturday morning but it’s also where members meet for the cycling sessions.

“The key session every week is the swimming on a Saturday morning,” said Hardy. “Historically, that’s the session that draws the most numbers, as much for the social aspect as the training. We have a regular slot at the pool.”

Not that the running and cycling are considered any less important.

“The cycling tends to be at the weekend,” continued Hardy. “There is a fairly easy ride on a Saturday morning and usually a longer ride on a Sunday.

“The main running session is on Wednesday nights.”

The club, which is for adults only, has a couple of discipline specific coaches but also has a number of triathlon coaches who can look after everything – not just the swimming, running and cycling but also the transition from one discipline to another.

“The transition is something that you should be practising and yes, it is something that can be coached,” said Hardy.

Bredon resident Hardy, an engineer who grew up in the village, took up triathlon when he was at university in Bath.

“Before that it was rowing,” he said. “I used to do a bit of cycling, running and swimming just to keep fit but I fancied a change. I didn’t have the time to commit to a team sport, so I joined the university’s triathlon club.”

So how good is he?

“I get by,” he laughed. “I usually do a couple of races a year.”

Hardy, who is also a member of Tewkesbury Running Club, may be being a little modest because he has finished fourth overall in the Isoman in Redditch in the past – “I toughed it out,” he said.

He also took part in Elbaman in September – an Ironman distance event on the Italian island of Elba – and finished 38th overall.

Club colleague Nicki Osborne was also in Elba and finished second in her age group in the middle distance Elbaman 73.

Osborne is one of the leading competitors at the club along with Tom Radley.

“Tom has had a really good year,” said Hardy. “He went to the European Aquathlon Championships in Ibiza and qualified for the world championships.”

Aquathlon is a swim/run event and one of the great things about triathlon is that it gives competitors three strings to their bow.

And Tewkesbury Triathlon Club certainly allows people to thrive.

“We’re a friendly club with so many talented athletes,” said Hardy. “There’s a good atmosphere and the aim is to have fun while continuing to put on good training sessions. It’s the reason I’ve stayed in Bredon for so long!”