After months of preparation, Vann said arriving at the world championship was surreal.

“I was kind of like ‘Finally, I am here,’” Vann said. “It was just kind of a shock after talking about it for almost a year, I was finally there. They had the race venue all set up it so it was kind of go time. I had to get in the mindset for worlds.”

Throughout the competition, she said knowing someone was there for her helped her get through the race.

“My dad went with me,” Vann said. “It was nice just to have (someone) there cheering for you when you cross the finish line.”

Her father, Bill Vann, said the race was on a larger scale than he had ever seen.

“They announced during the race that there were 100,000 people there watching,” Bill Vann said. “New Zealanders take that stuff really seriously. Auckland has 1.5 million residents, which is one-third of the whole country. So that’s a big area for it and it was very picturesque. It was quite an event for sure.”

Bill Vann said he was very proud to see his daughter participate in the race.

“Parents get too much credit when their kids do things well and they get too much blame when things don’t go well, but she did all this stuff herself,” Bill Vann said. “She did all the preparation and she’s the one that trains 20 hours a week. So I was just very proud as a dad to be there.”

MSU Triathlon Club adviser Anthony Klingler said Kate is 100 percent focused when it comes time to practice, so he was not surprised when she made it to the world championship.

“I think it just goes to speak about our work ethic on the team and that we have a very successful club,” Klingler said. “I think it’s good that she went and was able to represent Michigan State.”
Bill Vann said he is also not surprised by his daughter’s efforts.

“She’s the one that deserves all the credit,” Bill Vann said. “She’s the one that took on the sport. She’s new at it. And I really can’t say I’m surprised she has done so well because shes a very committed and determined person. I’m just really very proud of efforts and her results.”

Now that the race is behind her, Vann said she will begin to move forward.

“I’m taking a couple weeks off, and then I’m just going to train all winter,” Vann said. “I’m not doing world next year. This world was just to see where I stood and to see what I needed to do to get better and it did that. I’m just going to keep going.”