A Gimli-based business owner and mother of three will represent Canada at the 2025 World Triathlon Championships in Pontevedra, Spain — and she’s doing it with a humble heart and a community behind her.
Sheena Kilpatrick has been selected to compete in the long-distance triathlon at the international event this June. The race includes a 3-kilometre swim, a 121-kilometre bike ride and a 30.2-kilometre run — a gruelling test of endurance she’s trained years to conquer.
“I am completely honoured to have been selected,” Kilpatrick said in an interview with Express Weekly News. “It is a massive privilege to get the opportunity to compete for your country on the world stage and I’m just unbelievably excited.”
Kilpatrick has worked in the health and fitness industry for more than 20 years, coaching everyone from firefighters and cardiac rehab patients to professional athletes and new moms. Since relocating from Toronto to Gimli in 2020, she’s continued that work through her business, Harmony Tree Studio, while also building her own elite-level training plan.
“I think having this experience and the knowledge I’ve been able to gain through my education has helped me to build and adjust my training program — for my body and my mind — to give me the best chance of success,” she said.
Though she’s competed in many races over the years, Kilpatrick said her passion for triathlon began more than a decade ago while working at a school in Toronto.
“I was a fitness coach and part of the teachers’ running club,” she said. “Someone there got me into it — I was already a pretty strong swimmer and runner — and the more I did, the more I got into it.”
Her success hasn’t come without challenges. As a mother of three and a full-time business owner, Kilpatrick said time management is her toughest competitor.
“Balancing family time, my business and personal things you want to do — it’s tough for everyone,” she said. “What I’ve learned is it just has to be fluid, and you can’t beat yourself up if you have a few setbacks or misses.”
To stay on track, she keeps a detailed training diary and plans her weeks in advance, adjusting as needed.
“Mostly it’s based on a few longer distances and then cumulative kilometres. So if I have to cut short on one day, I make it up the next. Also, my family is extremely supportive of my training. If I need to pull out the bike and cycle while we watch a movie on a Saturday, it’s no problem.”
Heading into race season, Kilpatrick was logging roughly 200 kilometres a week between swimming, biking and running. She recently returned from a Team Canada training camp in Victoria, B.C., where she trained alongside Olympic athletes such as Simon Whitfield.
“The camp was amazing,” she said. “I was able to get training and race advice, and test out new technology and nutrition that could help me be more efficient during the race.”
Gimli has played a big role in her growth as an athlete. After a crash in Toronto involving a streetcar track, Kilpatrick said she’s grateful to have the space and scenery to train more safely and peacefully.
“Being in Gimli has been great for giving me a more peaceful place to train and get out in nature more,” she said. “Here I can just enjoy the scenery and get in some good long distances without too much concern.”
Kilpatrick said the community has been incredibly supportive.
“Everyone who knows I’m competing has been really encouraging and interested,” she said. “The positive energy from my family, clients and friends really makes me want to put everything out there and do the best I can.”
Though her travel and participation are self-funded, Kilpatrick said she and her family have been saving and finding creative ways to make it work.
“We’ve been collecting hotel points and saving since I found out I qualified,” she said. “I’m really not great at asking for money or sponsorship. As a parent and business owner I empathize with how much we are all asked for between sports and events and everything else.”
Looking ahead to Pontevedra, she’s proud just to be racing — but she also has her sights set on something more.
“Obviously I’m happy just to be able to qualify and represent Gimli and Canada, but I would be lying if I didn’t have it somewhere deep down that I want to win after all this training,” she said.
Kilpatrick is no stranger to standing on the podium. She recalled the significance of her first Subaru Championship Series win.
“I was competing against people who were part of huge teams and had really expensive equipment, and I was training alone on an average bike,” she said. “Winning that series because of pure hard work was pretty special.”
More recently, she earned another major milestone — qualifying to represent Canada again in 2026 at the next World Triathlon Championships, set for Abu Dhabi.
As for what keeps her going during hard training days?
“The biggest thing that keeps me going is just discipline,” she said. “I try to set my schedule and prioritize getting the kilometres in.”
To those watching from the sidelines — whether they’re young athletes or parents with big dreams — Kilpatrick has a message:
“Honestly, we all doubt ourselves more often than we should. We are all pretty amazing and can achieve unbelievable things,” she said. “My husband tells his team that the best way to eat an elephant is one bite at a time — which is weird because we’re vegetarian — but that’s really how to achieve big goals. Just keep doing a little bit over time. It’s all possible.”
Anyone interested in supporting Sheena Kilpatrick’s journey to the World Triathlon Championships — whether through sponsorship, donations or words of encouragement — can reach her directly by email at Sheena@harmonytreestudio.com or Instagram at @harmonytreestudio.
