F1 star Jenson Button is left trailing as teen Sky turns on the speed

Heading for a pitstop: Jenson Button prepares to dismount his bike in the triathlon at Eton, where he was eclipsed by young Sky Draper
13 April 2012

Jenson Button is anxious to set the pace at Sunday's British Grand Prix but he was left trailing by a 15-year-old girl when they raced in a triathlon at the weekend.

The McLaren star was red-faced after the event at Dorney Lake near Eton but that had nothing to do with exhaustion. For although the super-fit 30-year-old loves doing triathlons he was shown a clean pair of heels by Sky Draper, who is half his age.

Button, who entered the event under the pseudonym Jason Britton in a bid to avoid publicity, completed the course (750metres swim, 20km bike and 5km run) in 1hr 4mins.

That was still three minutes adrift of Draper although to be fair to Button he wasn't the only one not up to keep up with the junior triathlon champion.

Draper finished third out of 100, six places ahead of her world famous rival, who took defeat on the chin as he joined the GCSE student on a warm-down after the event.

The pair exchanged training tips during their 10-minute run togther and Button said: "Sky is a brilliant young athlete particularly considering her age. I'd say she has a great future in front of her as a triathlete."

A spokesman for event organisers Humanrace said: "Jenson is an excellent triathlete. There's no humiliation in being beaten by Sky as she is obviously exceptional in her field despite her young age. Jenson took the whole thing in his stride. Coming ninth when triathlon is not even your first-choice sport is still a great achievement."

Button became intested in triathlons two years ago as a way of keeping fit and showed he was no slouch at last year's London Triathlon.

He finished the 1.5km swim, 40km bike ride and 10km run in a personal best 2hrs and 7 mins and will be hoping to do even better when he competes again on 8 August to raise money for the Make A Wish Foundation.

Button's priority, though, is strengthening his claims for the drivers' championship at Silverstone this weekend.

He is in second place, six points behind team-mate Lewis Hamilton, and as he will be back on four wheels, the Brit has a good chance of being the leader of the pack again.

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