The 11th Buchan Triathlon raised £500 for the Isle of Man Live at Home Scheme.

More than 100 pupils aged between seven and 11 took part in eight races at King William’s College. After kicking off with a mass ’aerobics’ warm-up, competitors took to the water for a swim, which was followed by a cycle and ended with a run on the school field.

Distances varied depending on the pupils age, and all finishers in four school years were awarded a special medal at a post-event ceremony.

King William’s College principal Joss Buchanan said: ’It was wonderful to see so many of our young people enjoying themselves and helping raise money for a charity which plays a valuable role in island life.

’To coincide with our open days, the triathlon allowed the wider community to see what a happy school we are and was another example of the fond memories our children create at both the college and the Buchan.’

Cliff Dunn, head of boys’ PE and games, added: ’We are very grateful to SMP Partners for supporting our school triathlon once again, and it was great for the children to come together for an afternoon of fun, with the added bonus of raising money for an important Island charity. It was wonderful to see the children smiling and laughing as they took part, and everyone did superbly well.’

The Isle of Man Live at Home Scheme works to improve the quality of life of the elderly in the Isle of Man.

More than 700 old people in the Isle of Man are currently supported across five schemes through befriending projects, lunch groups, shopping clubs, coffee mornings and more.

Chief executive of Isle of Man Live at Home, Jackie Bridson, ran a refreshment stand at the triathlon and also held a raffle on the day to raise some additional funds for the charity.

She said:: ’This year marks the 20th anniversary of Live at Home in the Isle of Man, which is quite a milestone for us. Going forward we want to offer our services to even more older people and continue to tackle isolation and loneliness in our community. We rely almost entirely on fundraisers and voluntary donations, so we are very grateful to SMP Partners for nominating us as its charity of the year 2018.

’The Buchan Triathlon is a brilliant event and the children seemed to thoroughly enjoy themselves, I was very impressed with their speed and stamina!’

The event was sponsored by trust and corporate services company SMP Partners.