Samantha Herridge - elite triathlete and swimmer

Sam's website - blog

Welcome back

As of autumn 2009 I am resuming a coaching role with Sam to help her achieve her ambitions within triathlon. The last few years of her triathlon career has been hampered with injury and consequently we are looking at different approaches to address those problems and fulfil her goals.

Background

Sam Herridge is a stalwart of Channel Island Swimming Scene. Winning her first Senior Channel Island Swimming Championship title aged just 12, she has gone on to compete and medal in seven consecutive Island Games from 1991 until 2003. Successes in Island Games were followed by a National Age Group medals and numerous Southern County and Western County Championship titles. Aged 16 in 1994, Sam was the youngest member selected as part of the five strong Guernsey swim team to compete in the 400m, 800m freestyle and 200m butterfly in the 1994 Commonwealth Games in Victoria, Canada. Here she broke the Island long-course record for the 800m freestyle (9min 14.67secs)- which she still retains along with the Island short-course records for the 400m and 800m freestyle.

After a break from serious competition to undertake her studies Sam, aged 27, decided that a new challenge was needed and looked to the sport of Triathlon for motivation. Competing in her first triathlon in June 2004 she just has not looked back.

I worked with Sam in the build up to the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne where she had a great race and demonstrated should could hold her own with world's elite athletes. This result spurred Sam on to see just where she could get to in the sport. Initially she moved to Kelly College where she was able to combine a teaching role with training with the emerging triathlon squad based there including Flora Duffy. Despite struggling with an on-going injury problem in much of 2007, she achieved some solid results including winning the elite race at Windsor. In 2008 she has been able to put those problems behind her and has raced solidly including her 6th place in the Egirdir European Cup in Turkey.

In 2009 Sam competed in the ITU Premium Cup series and posted some useful results elevating her ITU ranking to 176th, European ranking of 41st and GB ranking of 8th, however chasing these ranking points led to further injury breakdown at the Ferrol ITU Points race. Sam was not to race again in 2009 as a consequence.