Bowood’s venue for duathlon (From This Is Wiltshire)

HUNDREDS of sports enthusiasts are expected to roll up for a new duathlon at Bowood House and Gardens on October 7.

Athletes can choose to compete in two events, the sprint duathlon and the super-sprint duathlon. The first race will be made up of a 5km run, a 21km bike ride and another 5km run at the end. The second race will be shorter, with a 2.5km run, a 12.5km bide ride and another 2.5km run.

This will be first time a duathlon has been held at the estate. The route will include views of the Bowood golf course and will pass the lake, and the Doric Temple.

Organiser Steve Fream, from Events Logic UK, runs sports events in the area on a monthly basis. He said the race at Bowood had the potential to become one of the biggest events on his calendar.

He said: “We’re trying to progress to bigger venues. That’s why Bowood is great because there’s no limitation on numbers, so we’re hoping over the years we can do more and more there.”

The race is from 10am-1pm. Children should be aged over 13 for the sprint and over 15 for the super-sprint, although Mr Fream is keen to encourage youngsters to take part.

He hopes to use the Bowood lake for a triathlon in the future and said the site could become a regional qualifier for youngsters wanting to compete as triathletes in national competitions.

Places must be pre-booked before midnight on October 4 at www.eventslogicuk.com