Having taken part in her first GO TRI event less than 18 months ago, this month Lucy became W18-24 Ironman World Champion. She proves anything is possible when you set yourself a challenge.
Lucy said: “After a fairly successful career as an open water swimmer for Great Britain, my love for swimming had started to fizzle out. It was at this time I decided to enter the Ironman UK triathlon, having never partaken in a multisport event before in my life. I needed to set a challenge of this enormity to reset my goals and make sure I would commit to training.”
Lucy realised by joining a triathlon club, she could educate herself on the task in hand with the support of others.
“I decided to join the new Hoddesdon Tri Club. It had been established for a couple of months and was based just around the corner from me – pretty perfect! It really was a great idea; it was here I learnt just how tough an Ironman was likely to be whilst also meeting some great people.
“Myself and a number of Hoddesdon Tri Club members took part in a local GO TRI Aquathlon, my first multi sport event, and I loved the whole experience. It was after this race I decided to enter many more triathlons, aquathlons and sportives to prepare me for the Ironman challenge. Time flew by and my triathlon brain absorbed as much knowledge as possible before the big race day arrived.”
Lucy went on to finish second in her age-group and, agonizingly, narrowly missed a slot for the 2014 World championships in Kona, Hawaii.
“After this I spent the winter months training hard with my club, rebuilding myself as a stronger athlete ready for the next tri season. This year I had one goal, return to Ironman UK and qualify for Kona.
A fortnight ago her training paid off, when our This Girl Can ambassador took the W18-24 title at the Ironman World Championships in Kona, her partner Reece taking fifth place in the M18-24 category.
“I can't thank GO TRI enough for pushing me in the right direction, giving me the buzz for this fantastic sport and setting me on a new career path. Let’s see where it can take me!”
To find out more about GO TRI and to get involved, click here.
