Central High School junior Tony Smoragiewicz placed third in the North American Junior Triathlon Championships Saturday during the Clermont Challenge in Clermont, Florida. He finished first among U.S. junior triathletes.

The Clermont Challenge, sponsored by the Pan American Triathlon Confederation (PATCO) and USA Triathlon, included a 750 meter swim, a 20K bicycle course, and a 5K run.

“On the swim, I came out of the water in 14^th place.” Smoragiewicz told IDS after the race. “On the bicycle stage, the field broke into two packs, I was in the second pack, and the first group built up a lead of about a minute and fifteen seconds. I came off the bike in 10^th place. On the run, I had the fastest time by about 30 seconds. The winner was from Mexico, and a Canadian came in 2^nd. I was 3^rd.”

The victory earned Smoragiewicz an invitation to compete in an August triathlon in Edmonton, Canada which is a qualifying race for the world championships next fall.

“I was very proud of Tony for racing smart and running himself into third place overall,” said Z3 Head Coach and Founder, Jenny Weber. “It’s just a great joy and pride to coach Z3 athletes. I am honored that our team represented the first American finishers. Now we are on to Edmonton [for Pan American Championships] and the rest of the season.”

On several occasions during the cross country season Smoragiewicz attributed his success to the cross training that he was doing to train for triathlons.

Smoragiewicz will fly home from Florida Sunday night in time to be in his AP chemistry class Monday morning. The Central High School track team begins workouts Monday afternoon.