Full steam ahead for Leeds’s triathlon golden girl Jessica Learmonth

Olympic champion Jess Learmonth has been asked on more than one occasion when she might consider retirement but after a stellar 2021 she is in no rush to stop just yet.
MOTIVATION: Jessica Learmonth in action during the mixed team triathlon relay where she won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images.MOTIVATION: Jessica Learmonth in action during the mixed team triathlon relay where she won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images.
MOTIVATION: Jessica Learmonth in action during the mixed team triathlon relay where she won gold at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Picture: Leon Neal/Getty Images.

The 33-year-old Leeds triathlete won mixed relay gold – alongside Jonny Brownlee, Georgia Taylor-Brown and Alex Yee – at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games and is also a European, Commonwealth and World Triathlon Series medal winner.

A big summer awaits Learmonth, who hopes success in World Triathlon events in Yokohama, Japan in May and Leeds in June will see her represent England at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

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Podium finishes in those races will qualify Learmonth for the Commonwealths at the end of July as she seeks to increase her impressive career medal haul.

MAGIC MOMENT: Leeds's Jessica Learmonth, second from right, with fellow gold medalists in the mixed team relay at Tokyo 2020 - Alex Yee, Georgia Taylor-Brown,  and Jonathan Brownlee. Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire.MAGIC MOMENT: Leeds's Jessica Learmonth, second from right, with fellow gold medalists in the mixed team relay at Tokyo 2020 - Alex Yee, Georgia Taylor-Brown,  and Jonathan Brownlee. Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire.
MAGIC MOMENT: Leeds's Jessica Learmonth, second from right, with fellow gold medalists in the mixed team relay at Tokyo 2020 - Alex Yee, Georgia Taylor-Brown, and Jonathan Brownlee. Picture: Danny Lawson/PA Wire.

“After the Olympics I had people talking to me about retiring and having kids but I feel like I am just starting to get going,” she said.

“I surprised myself a lot at the back end of last season. I feel quite motivated to press on.

“You get different feedback from different people, some think I can go to the Olympics in Paris [in 2024] and medal and others think I am going to retire and have kids. 

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“I am just ploughing on at the minute. It took me a while after Tokyo to get my head around where I wanted to be at.

Jessica Learmonth with her silver medal after the 2018 Commonwealth Games women's triathlon. She will be targeting more success at this year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Picture: Phil Walter/Getty Images.Jessica Learmonth with her silver medal after the 2018 Commonwealth Games women's triathlon. She will be targeting more success at this year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Picture: Phil Walter/Getty Images.
Jessica Learmonth with her silver medal after the 2018 Commonwealth Games women's triathlon. She will be targeting more success at this year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Picture: Phil Walter/Getty Images.

“I still feel motivated and the last year definitely helped with that.”

Learmonth is excited about returning to Leeds again for the World Triathlon Series having won silver in 2021 and bronze in 2019. This year in Leeds, elite triathlon racing will take place on both June 11 and 12 with individual sprint and team mixed relay racing being held across the weekend at Roundhay Park.

The mixed relay consists of two men and two women with the relay team set to be picked based on individual results.

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Learmonth hopes a home crowd will give her an added advantage as she seeks to ensure her place in the England team for the Commonwealth Games.

“I always like Leeds because it is my home race and the crowds and support is amazing,” she continued.

“Normally we travel all over the world and have to deal with time differences but when it is in Leeds I can rock up the day before and race.

“It is really strange because the majority of time we race outside of the UK.

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“It is nice that my family can come and other people who are not able to follow me around the world can come and support me.

“Leeds will probably be the biggest crowd we will have had since Covid. It helps so much and it will be nice for younger athletes to experience that.

“I would even say Leeds is louder than most and there is better support than from when I did the Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast [in 2018].”

She continued: “I would like to perform well in Leeds and Yokohama.

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“It will be nice with the Commonwealths being in Birmingham because last time I went it was on the other side of the world in Gold Coast.

“It would be lovely to be able to go there and have family and friends come down to support.”

Last time Learmonth was at the Commonwealth Games she came home with two silver medals from Australia in 2018.

It is just over two years until the Olympic Games return as Paris prepares to host in 2024.

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Learmonth will be 36 by the time those games come around but she is not ruling out being part of the Team GB squad in France.

“I have not counted it out, a bit like Jonny [Brownlee] I think. I am in the same sort of mindset as him,” she added.

“It all depends on performance, we have two more years to see where we are at. There might be someone who comes through and makes it difficult to qualify.

“It is not out of my reach and I am still motivated.”

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