World champion triathlete stops off in Deeside on Tour de Wales charity challenge

World champion triathlete Kate Strong stopped off in Deeside on Monday as part of a gruelling 600 mile Tour de Wales charity challenge.

The three-times world record holder is cycling anti-clockwise around the circumference of Wales with her new-to-cycling partner Kieren Windsor.

She and Kieren set off from Cardiff on Sunday (September 11) and have been travelling up from Welshpool through Wrexham and Flintshire en route to Bangor yesterday.

Kate and Kieren, who works in the legal profession, hope to raise funds for mental health and homeless support charity Bigmoose. It’s a cause close to their hearts as both have lost friends to suicide.

The Tour de Wales challenge is also an opportunity for Kate and Kieren to raise awareness of living more sustainably. They are riding on self-made bamboo bikes.

They were calling in at the White Bear pub in Mancot on a lunch stop-off as part of their epic journey before going on to Bangor via Rhyl. The challenge will end back in Cardiff on Saturday.

Dale Selvester, landlord of The White Bear in Mancot (pictured top, centre) said he was delighted to be able to host the special visitors for a well-earned lunch break during their gruelling challenge.

One of the Netham bamboo bikes being ridden by Kate and Kieren

He said: “We were extremely pleased and proud that Kate Strong and Kieren Windsor stopped at The White Bear for lunch before continuing their cycling journey around Wales. Good luck guys.”

Kate, 43, hopes to inspire others through sharing her story of becoming a world champion triathlete. She only started training for athletic success in her early 30s following a relationship breakdown.

She said this had forced her to re-evaluate her life and focus on her passions. Within two years, she was crowned world champion in long-distance triathlon in 2014 and subsequently broke three world records in static cycling in 2021.

Kieren, 49, has never participated in any solo sports and only recently took up cycling.

The couple will be relying on the hospitality of strangers as they complete this gruelling tour of over 600 miles and climb the equivalent of one and a half times the height of Everest in altitude ascent.  They hope to raise £10,000 in total for bigmoose.

Reflecting on the challenge, Kate said: “My motivation is to change the way we interact in life. People are struggling, nature is struggling, and through these challenging times of climate change and feelings of isolation, it’s even more important to think outside the box and stretch ourselves.

“My background isn’t unique, until my thirties I was working as an engineer and hadn’t partaken in any sport competitively since my teens. It was only through a cliff-edge moment, which left me financially in debt and emotionally distraught that I accepted my life needed to change. Fast-forward two years and I achieved the world championship in women’s long-distance triathlon, and even though I have days where I struggle and self-doubt, I know that I’m on the right path.”