Search
shop

“It gives me a lot of confidence” – Lee after winning big at The Championship

India Lee shares her thoughts after winning The Championship.
Staff Reporter
Last updated -
STRENGTH. ENDURANCE. PERFORMANCE.

Britain’s India Lee was a class apart in Šamorín as the 34 year old took the biggest win of her career at The Championship.

Lee, who is ranked PTO World #21, backed up a brilliant seventh place at the PTO Tour European Open two weeks ago with a formidable display of strength across the board to take the tape in Slovakia.

Looking ahead, the Brit has her eyes set on the PTO US Open, avoiding “bad luck” and playing a leading role in the current golden generation of British women in long course triathlon.

Advertisement

“It was a pretty hard day”

After running away with the win, whilst breaking Lucy Charles-Barclay’s course record in the process, Lee made it look easy, but shared the reality of the race was far from it.

“It was really hard day, a pretty tough day, with a cold swim, then a hot bike and a really hot run to finish!”

On top of the challenges presented by the heat, Lee suffered a serious bike mechanical pre-race, restricting her to only one gear on the bike. The Brit shared that this bit of “bad luck”, unfortunately, isn’t an isolated incident.

“I’ve had a lot of bad luck, so it means a lot. My coach and I have had a bit of a joke, saying to just focus on no bad luck in races this year.

“Whilst I had some bad luck today, I managed to figure it out and to take the win means quite a lot.” 

The British contingent

Reflecting on the race, Lee talked about just how special it was to have so many great British women in the field, and why she feels fortunate to be part of such a strong contingent of British long distance pros.

“It’s pretty cool, just having that many British women in the field creates that nice kind of environment, because we all know each other so there’s a lot of familiar faces around, which calms you down a little because you know you have someone to chat to.

“Just to be part of that is cool, there’s been so many races this weekend, and British women have been up there in all the races, so it is great to be part of that contingent.”

On top of Lee’s win, Emma Pallant-Browne won in France, whilst Lydia Dant also took a commanding victory for the second year running at IRONMAN Lanzarote.

“It gives me a lot of confidence”

Heading into the crux of the season, with August fast approaching, Lee underlined just how vital a win like this is to boosting her confidence that she can race with the best.

India Lee (right) at Challenge Riccione
Photo Credit: Jose Luis Hourcade (www.joseluishourcade.com)

“It gives me a lot of confidence. I know I have been training well for the last eighteen months, but I haven’t been able to show that in a race, so to have two good races on the trot, where I have been able to perform to the standard I thought I was capable of.

“This week I am just going to rest and have some downtime, then I’ll look towards the PTO US Open and 70.3 Worlds in August and maybe squeeze in some other races.

“I really want to continue to put together solid performances again, because I think I have proven that I can be competitive and that’s really exciting.” 

Tomos Land
Written by
Tomos Land
Tomos Land is a triathlon & running journalist whose expertise lies in the professional world of short course & long distance triathlon, though he also boasts an extensive knowledge of ultra-running.
Discover more
Dave Ellis / Luke Pollard - World Para Triathlon Championships Pontevedra 2023
Golden opportunity – British Triathlon launches search for LA2028 paratriathlon guides
IRONMAN Lanzarote 2024 - Anne Haug on run course
Best marathon shoes for Ironman – the ‘legal’ super shoes you CAN wear to level up your run split
Challenge Sanremo 2024 - Photo: Jose Luis Hourcade
How to fuel your triathlon training: Expert nutritionist tips to help you nail every session
swim start IRONMAN World Championship Kona 2024 photo credit Tony Svensson IRONMAN
Level up your Ironman swim split – must-read tips from an expert swim coach
Ironman gear guide – everything you need to get to the finish line of a full distance triathlon
latest News
Nikki Bartlett IRONMAN World Championship 2024 post race
Popular British triathlon star set to make season debut at IRONMAN 70.3 Aix-en-Provence
T100 goes Down Under as PTO’s flagship triathlon tour gets Australia date
Lionel Sanders training pic August 2023 photo credit Talbot Cox
Lionel Sanders family dream is alive again as triathlon’s IRONMAN World Championship heads home to Kona
Taylor Knibb 2024 IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship Taupo New Zealand
US triathlon phenom Taylor Knibb hails great rival Kat Matthews for record-breaking IRONMAN Texas win
Richard Varga Jonny Brownlee Arzachena
Triathlon legend Jonny Brownlee reveals ‘Last Dance’ motivation behind latest challenge
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...