Haynes and Boone, LLP Partner Jeff Dorrill won first place in his age category (55-59) at the World Championship Qualifier for the Draft Legal Sprint Duathlon at the U.S. National Duathlon Championships held June 17-18 in Bend, Oregon.
The competition consisted of a 5K run, followed by a 20K bike, and then another 2.5K run. Competing against the best duathletes in the country, Dorrill won his age category by six seconds, in a race that lasted over one hour and eight minutes. Dorrill was more than 90 seconds behind the leaders when the last run portion of the race began, but he passed them less than a tenth of a mile from the finish line.
By winning gold, Dorrill qualified to compete for Team USA in the 2018 World Duathlon Championships in Odense, Denmark.
Dorrill’s wife, Melisa, also qualified for Team USA, finishing ninth in her age category at the Duathlon National Championship.
“As thrilled as I am to win first place, I’m just as excited for Melisa, who dug deep during a hot day to take the last spot for Team USA in her age group. There are only a handful of couples (and even fewer with a seven-year-old to chase around) who are both on Team USA,” Dorrill said.
It’s been a busy year for Dorrill, 55, a veteran endurance athlete. For example, during a three week stretch in April, Jeff (1) ran in his fourth Boston Marathon, (2) competed for the University of Alabama in the US Collegiate Club Triathlon National Championship (Jeff is eligible to compete for UA because he is working towards an online master’s degree in human environmental sciences at the University of Alabama), and (3) won the bronze medal in his age category at the US Long Distance Duathlon National Championships held in Cary, North Carolina.