Search
shop

Working through a pandemic: Lucy Hall on the reality of PRO life

Lucy Hall on how she worked through the pandemic as a swabber for Premier League footballers and cleaning for a physio.
Chief Correspondent
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020 many professional triathletes were left with no source of income – Lucy Hall found herself in exactly that situation.

The 29-year-old Leeds-based star got through a difficult few months though by switching sports to football’s Premier League – as a COVID-19 swabber.

Lucy worked at Sheffield United as football tiptoed out of the sport’s enforced lockdown to complete its 2019-2020 Premier League season.

Working through the pandemic

“I actually went and worked as a swabber for the Premier League, for the footballers during COVID,” she explained.

“I worked for a company for six or seven months at Sheffield United. It was a good experience, it made me think that this is cool, I can do something else and triathlon is not the only thing i can do in my life.

“I’ve been around for a while and that’s all I’ve ever known. In a way, I needed to do something different to know that if triathlon didn’t / doesn’t work out, there are other things I can do.

“It’s difficult, it’s tough [life as a Pro triathlete], but I thought that I need to make some form of income – I can’t just live off Bucko (Mark Buckingham, Lucy’s partner) – I have to do something, and that’s when I got that gig.

“I was also cleaning – I was cleaning at a physio twice a week through the pandemic. It kind of gave me an idea of what I can do – I’m sacrificing a lot to do triathlon, but it also made me just really grateful that i’ve got the opportunity to do it.”

The reality of PRO life

‘Living the dream’ might be a phrase often used, but that is far from the reality for most professional triathletes. For middle and long-distance racers too, there is no comfort in central contracts from the National Federation either.

Lucy admitted: “When I first came off funding, they were the first few things on my mind – what am I going to do about travel insurance? What am I going to do about physio?

“It makes you think – can I do this? Can I do triathlon? Can I support myself? I didn’t want to do it if I couldn’t make a living and as with any athlete, it’s difficult when you are then living in a pandemic, there are no races and there’s not really any way of making any kind of money.

Support is key – and a PTO lifeline

“The fact that I can get coached by Bucko, and get coached by Coz, and have that support system as well, I’m super lucky to have that. It was eye opening, definitely, in the pandemic having that.

“The whole year really has helped in terms of getting people’s attention and I also think it helps that things are opening up in the world in general. Last year, I think if you’d asked somebody to sponsor you than they would most probably have said no. It didn’t make sense to sponsor an athlete when there are no races going on.

“The big thing was the PTO giving out the end-of-year bonuses when they did. That helped me so much. Things like I bought a treadmill because we could only go out once a day at one point. Just the ability to buy that, made so much difference. Having that PTO support was huge. What they are doing as well within our sport I think is just brilliant.”

Lucy is also in the running for a bonus from the Challenge Family World Bonus scheme, currently in third place with just CLASH Daytona remaining on December 4.

“It gives you something to aim for. When 70.3 Worlds came off the my schedule, it was something else to strive for towards the end of the year which really helped for my mental well-being as well, as I had something else to chase.”

Lucy Charles / The Championship
Challenge Family success for Lucy Hall at The Championship, Samorin
Photo credit: activimages
John Levison
Written by
John Levison
TRI247's Chief Correspondent, John has been involved in triathlon for well over 30 years, 15 of those writing on these pages, whilst he can also be found commentating for events across the UK.
Discover more
TRI247 podcast p/b Challenge Family episode 2
Go behind the scenes at Challenge Roth with the latest episode of the TRI247 podcast
Cadomotus Chronos triathlon cycling shoes
The triathlon cycling shoe that promises a 10-watt saving: Cadomotus Chronos Aero triathlon cycling shoes review
Challenge Family Roth
Five things you need to know about the Challenge Roth bike course
Challenge St. Pölten 2024 - image credit Jose Luis Hourcade / Challenge Family
Expert swim coach on the three most common swim mistakes age group triathletes make (and how to fix them!)
TRI-FIT VANGUARD tri suit review
The entry-level tri suit with a serious amount of performance for the price point – TRI-FIT VANGUARD review
latest News
Frederic Funk finish line Challenge Samarkand 2023 photo credit Challenge Family
Challenge Roth 2025: German star goes into the unknown in iconic triathlon showdown
Challenge Barcelona 2023 - Photo Credit: Jose Luis Hourcade
‘It’s going to be an absolute firecracker’ says Cam Wurf after booking IRONMAN World Champs spot
Maya Kingma Karlovy Vary win 2024
Two-time Olympic triathlete joins top pro cycling team – and is set to race in Giro d’Italia
Oliver Conway World Triathlon Cuo win Saidia 2025
Breakthrough World Cup win – and Brownlee Racing spot – in memorable week for British youngster
Lionel Sanders wins 70.3 St George 2025 photo credit Getty Images for IRONMAN
Triathlon superstar Lionel Sanders moving again but taking it step by step in injury battle
triathlon on your terms
Never miss out with our triathlon alerts & digest. Get a dose of adventure & inspiration with Boundless.
The 247 Group

The home of endurance sports

Share to...