Search
shop

Britain’s Olympic triathlon legend Alistair Brownlee reveals his retirement bucket list

Ultrarunning events on the agenda for Yorkshire's Olympic great
Last updated -
STRENGTH. ENDURANCE. PERFORMANCE.

Olympic hero Alastair Brownlee recently announced his retirement from professional triathlon following an amazing 18-year career at the top of the sport.

However, the London 2012 and Rio 2016 Olympic champion still has ambitions in the endurance sports world and has now highlighted a number of events he’d like tackle post-retirement.

In a discussion on the Business of Sport Podcast, which is embedded below, the elder Brownlee brother gave a hint of what the future might hold for one of Yorkshire’s finest talents.

Advertisement

Ultra-sport intrigue

“I want to remain active, I am an athlete, but I am someone who just loves being outside, being active, exploring, adventuring, challenging myself,’ Brownlee said when discussing his post-retirement plans.

“I have had an 18-year career in professional sport, but along that time there has been a number of things I have wanted to have a go at but not been able to, because I’ve been focusing on the next race and that’s been my career.

“I’ve wanted the chance to do those things – ultrarunning, long distance biking, those kind of things. Things that test you in different ways, for me now it’s really most about adventure and pushing myself over a long period of time.

Alistair Brownlee Helvellyn TRi photo Chris Sansom
Alistair Brownlee at the Helvellyn Tri in 2023 [Photo credit: Chris Sansom]

“I’d love to do ultrarunning, and probably the biggest single day event in the world is UTMB, or multi-day would be Marathon des Sables, maybe some ultrabike racing. There is kind of a load of different things I’m looking at doing, things that I have wanted to do for a long time.”

Ready for adventure

The discussion dipped further into the world of survival-sport crossover multi-day events that test endurance and mental will to breaking point.

“Those events exist in different guises, you can do multi-day adventure races, you can do in teams where you cross vast waves of countries by cycling, biking, kayaking, swimming.

“The world of bike-packing has just kicked off, these guys are crazy. There’s one in the UK called the ‘British Divide’ who do Land’s End to John O’Groats unsupported over a few weeks.

“Probably the biggest ultrarunning race in the UK is the Spine Race, the winter event has just finished, along the Pennine Way which I think is 250 miles which again is unsupported.

“That world of ultra sport has exploded in recent years, it’s amazing.”

Stuart Dick
Written by
Stuart Dick
Stuart is a graduate of the University of Sunderland with a masters' degree in Sports Journalism. He spends a lot of his time running and cycling around West Yorkshire, England.
Discover more
Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT 3 navigation and colour display
Wahoo ELEMNT BOLT 3 GPS bike computer review
Best triathlon swim courses – our top 10 triathlons for an epic start to race day
triathlon swimming open water
“Triathletes shouldn’t kick during the swim” and other triathlon swimming myths- BUSTED by an expert swim coach
SunGod FORTY2s running sunglasses review
First look at the NEW SunGod FORTY2s running sunglasses – TRI247 Review
Gustav Iden aero position body rocket
How to get better at holding your time trial position – Expert tips from former PRO time trial cyclist Alex Dowsett
latest News
Will McCloy Super League Triathlon
IRONMAN Cairns broadcast gets added spice as the voice of Supertri joins commentary team
IRONMAN Cairns
IRONMAN Cairns 2025: Date, start time and how to watch Pro Series blockbuster live
T100 Vancouver 2025: Date, start time and how to watch live as triathlon superstars do battle
Kristian Blummenfelt IRONMAN Texas Finish Line 2025
IRONMAN Frankfurt announces STACKED start list as Blummenfelt and Lange head all-star cast
Pieter Heemeryck IRONMAN Portugal Cascais 2023
Top triathlon star on the way back after being ‘frozen up with fear’ following horror bike crash in New Zealand
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...