DEDICATION has been rewarded with a place in the Age Group World Triathlon Championships for Dave Granger.

The 45-year-old from Norton will be jetting out to Cancun in Mexico in November after securing a spot in the British team at a qualifying event.

Granger's selection is all the more praiseworthy after he was knocked off his bike and missed two months training prior to the Shropshire qualifier.

"I didn't expect to do so well," he admitted. The weather was atrocious but everything just clicked into place and I beat my personal best by around ten minutes."

The event consisted of a one-mile swim, 25-mile bike ride and a six-mile run - a task the former cabinet maker completed in a time of two hours and 19 minutes.

Now, having just started a new career in sports massage, the Vale all-rounder, whose last Great Britain call came in 1997 when he travelled to Australia with wife Jeanette, will be hoping for a smoother passage ahead of his Cancun challenge.