Name: Donna Galotta
Sport: Running & Triathlon
Age Group: 60-64
Hometown: Hoover, AL
Number of Years Racing/Competing: 9 years
B.E.S.T. Coach: Sarah Portella
Racing Career Highlights:
- Learning to run correctly & completing an Ironman (Chattanooga 2015)
You never know how or when an athlete/coach relationship will blossom. A few years ago, Donna moved to Alabama from Massachusetts. She was getting involved with the local tri club and the following spring she attended the B.E.S.T. Chattanooga Tri camp where she and Coach Sarah Portella met.
That fall she decided to make the switch to a local coach and she chose Coach Sarah! Coach Sarah has enjoyed watching her continue to grow as an athlete and develop into a runner (she considers herself a “jogger”) and better triathlete.
Donna has been active her entire life, growing up competing in gymnastics and swimming from a young age. She did not get into running or triathlon until later in life when a Physical Therapist friend suggested that they all do a local triathlon. From that point forward Donna was hooked. She kept competing as a way to stay healthy (one of her biggest motivators for continuing in the sport). You can find her out and about running with her dog in the neighborhood or swimming laps around folks at the local YMCA.
A physical therapist, semi-retired, Donna enjoys continuing her education by studying research done in her profession. In her free time, she also likes reading for enjoyment and watching movies.
This rock star Age Group athlete has podiumed countless times in all distance running events and in Sprint and Olympic distance triathlons. She hopes to compete for a very long time to come! Next season Donna will be headed to Omaha to tackle the new Ironman event the city will be hosting.