On January 31, 2016, longtime swimmer and lifelong Badger, Wyatt Collins, placed 2nd in his age group in the Ironman 70.3 Panama Pan American Pro Championship. This win earns Collins a place in the 70.3 World Championships in Mooloolaba, Queensland on September 4, 2016.
Ironman 70.3 is a triathlon comprised of a 1.2 mile swim, 56 mile bike, and a 13.1 run (in that order). It is essentially the little brother to the better known ‘full’ Ironman, which is double the distance and has its annual World Championships in Kona, Hawaii every October. The 70.3 distance is contested all across the world with a few dozen races every year. Each race has approximately 30 slots that are awarded to the highest finishing amateurs for that year’s World Championships.
This years Pan American Pro Championship race took place in Panama and offered a prize purse of $100,000, and drew some of North America’s most talented athletes to contest the title. Overall, about 2,000 triathletes descended upon Panama City to mark the start of the 2016 season. Wyatt Collins described the conditions on race day as ‘brutal’ with high heat, high humidity, wind, and little cloud cover.
When asked if starting his swim career as a Badger has influenced his decision to become a triathlete, the answer was a resounding “Yes.”
Collins explains,“First, Badger allowed me to experience life as an elite athlete at a young age. Training up to 4 hours a day, both in the pool and the weight room, required a high level of discipline and dedication. By learning these traits in high school, it has given me a tremendous advantage over my competition nowadays.
Second, swimming for Badger taught me the importance of time-management. Being an athlete, whether it be a student-athlete, an elite-athlete, or a professional-athlete, requires an immense amount of organization and time. By having to prioritize, to organize, and to use my time wisely, I learned a valuable set of skills that has greatly influenced my athletic career, but also more broadly, my life as a whole.
Finally, and possibly most importantly, swimming for Badger exposed me to a wonderful and productive network of relationships that continue to this day. Having made lifelong friends with teammates, but also having forged bonds with coaches whom I looked up to, has provided me with a positive support network that has had an immeasurable impact upon on my life up to this point.”
Wyatt Collins has spent the last 3 years training as a triathlete out of Austin, TX where he resides full time. Collins, a graduate of UT and a two year letterman himself, is currently in his third year as an assistant coach to Eddie Reese, storied longtime head coach of the Longhorns, and former Olympic coach. UT won the 2015 Men’s NCAA Champions and are favored to win again this year. While helping bring the Longhorns to another victory and while training for the World Championships, Collins will also compete in the 70.3 in Galveston, TX, National Championships in Omaha, NE, as well as local, shorter distance races. Collins future plans include continuing to coach at the highest level, either at the collegiate or club level, and competing in triathlons, once again, at the highest level.
