Going the extra mile

Claire Koeppel rounds a bicycle turn at a recent triathlon event (Submitted/The Report).

Teen triathlete likes to tackle challenges

By Jason Arndt
Editor

Competing in triathlons takes discipline, determination and the willingness to tackle obstacles along the way.

Westosha Central High School junior Claire Koeppel fits that bill.

The traits, according to her father, Jason Koeppel, started at an early age.

When she was about four years old, Jason recalled a race his family participated in, which included her brother, Luke, who was two years younger. Luke is now a student at Westosha Central.

Claire Koeppel

“Her brother was around two years old and she just took off and ran the race herself and finished,” said Jason, whose wife is Trish, and has another son, Brock, a Bristol School student.

Since then, Claire continues to finish races, including triathlons, a sport she discovered when she was around 12 years old.

The race, she recalled, took place at Pleasant Prairie RecPlex where a member of an Illinois triathlon team recognized her strengths and encouraged the 12-year-old to join.

“It was a great first race and I enjoyed it,” Claire said. “Somehow, when the times were posted, the team saw my name and my time and how I was a little bit younger and they reached out to me.”

Claire, who already had about two years club swimming experience under her belt, learned valuable skills while a member of MMTT-Mach II, a Naperville-based team.

“It helped me out a lot and got me more experience,” said Claire, who left the team when she started her freshman at Westosha Central.

In the following years, she garnered more experience, competing in at least a handful of other triathlon events.

In 2017, Claire finished fourth of more than 600 competitors at the IronGirl Sprint Triathlon at the RecPlex.

Jason Koeppel said his daughter often seeks out events to compete in, telling him to mark them on his calendar.

“Now she tells me, ‘I am doing a race on this day, put it on the calendar,’” he said.

One race he circled on his calendar was last September, when Claire competed at the J-Hawk LateBird Triathlon in Whitewater.

At the triathlon, Claire finished fourth among 61 competitors, and had the best time in her 19 and under age group.

The three women ahead of her were at least twice her age, and in her age bracket, the next best finisher placed 23rd overall.

Although she has notched several achievements, merely finishing the race amid challenges brings the most reward, Claire said.

Tackling challenges
Unlike some athletes in her age group, who typically play basketball, football, baseball and other sports, Claire enjoys triathlons.

“I like the challenge of it,” she said. “You just like to see if you can do better than the last time or just make it through.”

Claire, who acknowledged biking is most difficult, uses the challenge as a point of motivation.

“There has been some triathlons where I am on the bike, and it is so windy, but I always want to keep going and keeping pushing myself to finish,” she said. “The end result of the race is awesome and it is a relief to know I actually finished it.”

Claire, who boasts high school track and swimming experience, also said the bicycle’s mechanics takes time to grow accustomed to.

“Biking is definitely the hardest,” she said. “Even training for it, I just had to get used to it, with the gears switching and pedaling.”

While she finds biking the most challenging aspect, she is a consistent competitor in the other two facets.

Claire, who runs for the Westosha Central track team, also swims for the Lake Geneva Badger co-op program.

As a sophomore on the Westosha Central track team, she placed among the top five in the 3,200-meter run three times, including a personal record 12 minutes, 49.70 seconds at the Borg Invite hosted by Delavan-Darien High School.

Additionally, she placed among the top 10 in the 1,600 meter, including a career best 5:51.62 in the Kenosha County Meet, which garnered her sixth.

On the Lake Geneva Badger swim team, Koeppel finished fourth in the 200 freestyle and fifth in the 500 freestyle, two events where she saw most of her individual success as a sophomore.

The continuous engagement in all three, Jason Koeppel said, shows her dedication and brings added benefits.

“Doing those three together requires discipline,” he said. “You get a little tired of doing just one after awhile, when the swim season is over, it is kind of nice to run or hop on the bike.”

Time management
Claire, who dedicates at least 10 hours of training per week, said she takes advantage of every opportunity to bolster her skills.

When she is at her summer job, where she works at an area pool, she takes advantage of whatever time is available to swim laps and then runs and bikes.

A look ahead
Although Claire has more than a year until she graduates, she has started to explore college opportunities, including a possible triathlon scholarship.

The triathlon scholarship, according to the National Collegiate Athlete Association, is a relatively new program.

In 2015, the NCAA announced eight schools were awarded a multi-year grant to help each participating school develop their own varsity triathlon programs.

“Triathlon was added to the list of NCAA emerging sports for women at the 2014 NCAA Convention, and the USA Triathlon grants are aimed at increasing the sport’s sponsorship at the college level,” a news release states.

By 2017, 17 schools have officially made triathlons a varsity sport.

“It is starting to get out there more and it is going to grow, but it is not like basketball,” said Claire, who said the emerging sport along with swimming don’t receive as much attention as major athletics, like basketball, football and baseball/softball.

Claire, meanwhile, remains open to opportunities in any of the three sports.

“I am not really sure if I want to do just triathlons, swim, or run, but I am open to anything,” she said.


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