Search
shop

‘I just wanted to run fast’ – Emma Pallant-Browne on St George podium

Five years on, Emma Pallant-Browne returned to the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship podium on Friday in St George, Utah
Chief Correspondent
Last updated -
Get the ultimate guide to destination racing

Five years ago, Great Britain’s Emma Pallant-Browne finished second at the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship in Chattanooga. Falling relatively early in her middle distance career, the biggest surprise perhaps is that it has taken her those five years to return to the podium at the 70.3 champs.

That is just what she did on Friday, utilising her fantastic run speed to overtake defending champion, Lucy Charles-Barclay, with little more than a mile to go of the run in St George. Crossing the line third behind Taylor Knibb and Paula Findlay meant a lot to the Brit, who now lives in South Africa.

Advertisement

Fuel to the fire

The subject of that run was the first topic of the post-race press conference – but the day had started particularly well in the water, too.

“It hurt enough, it was tough! I got on the bike and I was so happy with my swim. I could see the girls I was around with, and for me it was probably the best swim I’ve ever had and so I thought, this could be an ok day.

“I got on the bike, and I could hardly even put on my shoes, it was freezing. I was really unhappy with my bike, but in a way I think that added a bit of fuel to the fire to have a hard run and make it suffer out there.”

ST GEORGE, UTAH - OCTOBER 28: Emma Pallant-Browne of Britain celebrates as she finishes in third place during the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on October 28, 2022 in St George, Utah. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN

While Pallant-Browne’s run prowess is well known, when you are starting several minutes down on the likes of Flora Duffy, Paula Findlay and Lucy Charles-Barclay, did she think a podium was still possible?

“I had no expectations. I just wanted to run fast, and if I saw people then great, but I was just looking at every aid station and focussing on that instead. I knew that it wouldn’t be easy overtaking as everyone is going to go with the battle – it was really tough.”

The conditions also impacted Emma’s typical nutrition strategy, as she explained:

“I knew that I’d actually probably use more calories because I was so cold on the bike, but I struggled because I didn’t want to take my hands off of the bars. I probably didn’t get in anywhere near enough as I should have on the bike, so as soon as I hit that run every aid station to me was gold, and I just drank as much as I could, grabbed as much as I could.

“I think that I made up for the calories on the run this time – normally in my races I do it the other way around, hardly take in anything on the run and do it all on the bike.”

Good to be back… on the World Champs podium

“It was so emotional because Chattanooga seems like forever ago. There I was no one, nobody knew who I was and I got a second. The worlds since then I think there’s been three or four of them, and I’ve kind of scraped top-10’s, a top-5, so to get back on the podium meant a lot.

“I was getting time splits so regularly and I could see that the time was coming down, but I know that all of the girls can run super fast, and so I thought it would be the second lap that anything happened. I was really encouraging getting the support on course, but we could see each other, especially on the u-turns, and I was thinking that none of these girls are giving an inch and that it might come down to the wire.”

ST GEORGE, UTAH - OCTOBER 28: (L-R) Paula Findlay of Canada in second place, Taylor Knibb of the United States in first place, and Emma Pallant-Browne of Britain in third place celebrate on the podium after the IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship on October 28, 2022 in St George, Utah. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN)
Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images for IRONMAN
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
Anne Haug wins Challenge Roth 2024 [Photo credit: Simon Fischer | Challenge Roth]
Anne Haug on inspiration ahead of comeback, sub-eight and no intention of retiring just yet
Caroline Pohle Ironman 70.3 Zell Am See 2024
CHAOS as Lena Meissner wins amazing sprint finish to become 70.3 European Champion and is then DEMOTED
Alistair Brownlee Nathan Edmondson Oxenhope Straw Race 2025
Olympic legend Alistair Brownlee dons Trump costume and downs pints in fundraising Oxenhope Straw Race
Sam Laidlow joy Challenge Roth win 2025
Challenge Roth hero Sam Laidlow thought he was in front for HOURS before taking lead
Sam Laidlow celebrates Challenge Roth win 2025
Challenge Roth 2025 men’s results: INCREDIBLE comeback win for Sam Laidlow
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...