McCullough off to Olympics

Dylan McCullough is preparing for his Olympic Games debut in Paris next month after being named in a four-strong New Zealand team for triathlon’s mixed relay and individual races.

The 23-year-old Aucklander is the youngest son of Marty McCullough, a director of Dolphin Shipping and Optimus Group New Zealand.

Dylan, pictured, has been named alongside Hayden Wilde for the men’s individual race on July 30 and the pair will team with Nicole van der Kaay and Ainsley Thorpe for the mixed relay on August 5.

He has previously represented New Zealand in triathlon at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympics, winning gold in the men’s individual and silver in the mixed relay at the latter.

Dylan says being picked for the Olympics is a big achievement. He adds the most special part of his selection was sharing the news with his family and coach John Hellemans.

“This is kind of just as much for them as it is for me, really,” he explains. “I would not be in this position if it wasn’t for my mum, dad, my brother. They’ve kind of kept me going through all the hard times.”