A blind counselor will take part in the first triathlon to inspire others

A blind local councilor will take part in her first triathlon in the hope it will inspire others to believe they too can tackle challenges “no matter what level you’re at”.

Eli Southwood, 41, a Work Queen’s Park Councillor, Londonis the only blind participant in the super sprint at Blenheim Palace triathlon, which takes place from June 3 to 4.

The event will see her swim a 400m open water swim, run 2.9km and a 10km tandem run with running coach Sophie Barnard, who will be attached to her during the run and swim and who has never before been a guide in triathlon.

“I’ve never done a triathlon before,” Ms Southwood, who lives in Willesden Green, London, told the PA news agency.

“I thought it would be interesting to do because of the amazing, huge effort of the local community.

“They (154) of us (from the Kensal Tri community fitness initiative) will all be heading to Blenheim for the weekend and will all be raising funds for local charities, so it will be like taking your community to Blenheim.”

Ms Barnard said learning from Ms Southwood had been a “very rewarding” process.

“It’s very different to anything I’ve ever done before – I’ve never ridden a tandem before so I was really nervous about it,” the 53-year-old, who also lives in Willesden Green, told PA.

“Knowing that Ellie was already trying to play tandem gave me confidence.”

The pair have previously taken part in events together and Ms Barnard said: “Running with Ellie is like running with a rock star.”

Ms Barnard said that although she was “emotionally shaky” when she first tried the tandem, they are now confident.

“We had a really successful training session on Saturday which was a real confidence booster.

“Swimming was also really fun – I really enjoy our classes. “I’ve never swam with anyone, but it felt completely natural.”

Ms Southwood said cycling was her favorite of the three sports “because it’s the one where I feel like once we start we’re really going”, while Ms Barnard is a big fan of swimming .

The money raised will go to Queen’s Park-based refugee charity Salusbury World, which Ms Southwood said was “delighted that we wanted to support their work”.

“Queen’s Park has a really long history of welcoming different waves of refugees from all over the world … and that’s something that I think is special about our area,” she added.

“These organizations are under enormous pressure, so we thought we could help in any way we could.”

Some members of the Kensal Tri Team will also be refugees.

Ms Southwood said she was most looking forward to seeing other people take part in the triathlon weekend.

“Depending on how the timings work out, we’ll be able to see other people doing it as well, and we’re very interested in that, especially because we’ve had a lot of support from everyone these last couple of weeks.

“I look forward to being able to support other people, and that feeling of a collective effort is really magical.”

Ms. Barnard shared similar sentiments, adding that the site was “beautiful” and that she hoped to gain energy and support from those in attendance.

Giles Deards, organizer of the Kensal Tri, added that Ms Barnard and Ms Southwood’s story had an inspirational effect on other participants.

“Everyone (the other team members) watched what Sophie and Ellie did and found it inspiring for their own training,” the 53-year-old, who lives in Queen’s Park, told PA.

“Around this time every year I usually find that about 10-12 people from our giant team suddenly claim problems or pain and leave, but that didn’t happen this time, and I think that has a lot to do with , that Ellie and Sophie set such an inspiring example.”

Ms Southwood added: “You can tackle it at whatever level you’re at in terms of fitness or confidence.”

She also encouraged people to volunteer to be a guide on runs in the park.

“This is really the definition of inclusiveness, but without volunteers, visually impaired people would not be able to participate.

“You don’t need a qualification to do it and it’s a very personal experience.”

The fundraising page can be found here: https://www.justgiving.com/page/elliesophietandemtri