Old Collegian, Regan Hollioake (2007), recently competed and placed eighth in the UTAH Ironman 70.3 World Championships.
Throughout her teenage years, Regan swam competitively at a national level. Although she retired from the sport at the age of 17, she remained active through participating in running, cycling and water polo.
In 2019, she participated in her first Ironman 70.3 in Geelong. The Ironman 70.3 entails a 1.9k swim, 90km bike ride and 21.2km run.
Regan has since competed across the country and won podium positions in every race. Three years after her first Ironman, she won the same race in Geelong, which qualified her to compete in the World Championships in Utah.
“I fell in love with the sport, the atmosphere, the community and the finish-line-buzz you get when running down the red carpet,” said Regan. “It was a special achievement for me to qualify to race against the best athletes from all over the word.”
Two weeks before the UTAH Ironman 70.3, Regan tore her hamstring, which caused significant pain and pre-race stress.
“It significantly impacted me on the day but, despite the pain and limping through the run, I’m incredibly proud of pushing through, racing hard and placing eighth in the world,” said Regan. “Sometimes the most satisfaction comes from overcoming obstacles and showing resilience rather than the result on paper.”
Following her time as a student at Clarendon, Regan studied physiotherapy at La Trobe University. She has worked as a physiotherapist in Melbourne and Geelong and is now working in the disability sector.
“Clarendon taught me the benefit of persistence, a strong work ethic and setting high standards and goals for myself to strive for excellence,” said Regan. “These are values that have held me in good stead into my adult life in both my professional and sporting endeavours. Any sport, particularly endurance multisport, requires high levels of commitment, teamwork, resilience and determination, all of which are qualities that were nurtured for me at school.”
Regan is currently training for races in Tasmania, Geelong, Port Macquarie, Cairns and New Zealand, with goals to qualify for the Ironman 70.3 World Championships in Finland and the Ironman 140.6 Championship in Kona.
Congratulations, Regan, on this wonderful achievement. We wish you the best of luck for your upcoming events.