Help send Barb to the World Triathlon Championships!

Hi, we’re Marla and Paul, and you probably know of, or are a friend of, with our mom: Barb Kishimoto.

Let us tell you a bit about our mom. She took up running in her 50s, and after retiring in 2009 from 30 years of teaching high school math, started training for endurance sports in earnest. Since then she has run countless 5ks, 10ks, half-marathons, and marathons—on her first try in 2012, she immediately qualified for the Boston Marathon, and ran it twice in 2013 and 2014 (being unable to finish the first year due to the bombing). She's taken up cycling: she calls 60 km, “just a casual weekend ride” and has done numerous centuries (100 km+ rides). And she's been training up her swimming, the sport that's come least naturally to her, getting up at 4 am (remember: she's retired!!) to go train with her swim coach.

All of this has culminated in a love for triathlons. Since her first in 2012 she's completed every distance from the Try-a-tri (400 m swim, 10 km bike, 2.5 km run) up to a half-Ironman (2 km swim, 90 km bike, 21 km run). She trains with a local club, enters 4–6 races every summer, and regularly finishes at or near the top of her age bracket, racking up a haul of podium medals that cover an entire wall at home. And one recent top finish qualified her to represent Canada at the October 2024 World Triathlon Championships in Malaga, Spain in the sprint distance event (750 m swim, 20 km bike, 5 km run) for women 65–69!

Unfortunately, Canada does not supply any kind of funding for age-group triathletes to participate in these races. And the costs stack up, when you account for flights, registration fees, kit purchase (Team Canada gear is mandatory), training, bike rental, etc.

Let us tell you something else about Barb. If you didn't already know, she is incredibly generous. She regularly donates her time and money to great causes. To mention only her sport-related volunteering, for years she's led her choir, the Mississauga Festival Choir, in raising money for charity through the Mississauga Marathon. She has many times participated in the Ride for Heart to support research for heart disease and strokes. Quite possibly you've donated to support her fundraising through sports—if you have, then thank you!

Now, we’re asking you to support Barb for her own sake. She's put in so much time and effort to achieve this amazing feat of qualifying for the Worlds, and has never asked for a penny for herself. Barb decided to go to Spain even if she had to pay everything out of pocket—but we say that it's time we all step up and send her there! Let's celebrate this incredible accomplishment. Any small donation will help, as will sharing this fundraiser!

Here is the itemized breakdown of costs, provided by Barb:

Initial goal—Malaga costs:

Administrative fee to Triathlon Canada: $225

Team Canada Uniform: $800

Bike rental: $283

Flights to and from Malaga: $1877

Hotel accommodations: $1715

Race registration fee (not posted yet, but an estimate due to previous years’ info): $400

Total: $5300 —initial goal

Stretch goal—training fees and training race registration fees (keep in mind this is ONLY 2024—one year of 12 she’s been competing):

Swim classes: $578

Swim training camp (May): $2250

El Cruce 4km swim race (May): $168

Toronto Triathlon Festival (July): $168

Owen Sound Triathlon (July): $94

Women's Triathlon Festival (August): $123

Wasaga Beach Triathlon (August): $114

Lakeside Triathlon (September): $130

Total: $3625

Grand total: $8925 —stretch goal

Any money that exceeds the stretch goal will be donated to Team Unbreakable, a Mississauga charity that supports the mental health of youth through physical activity.