Yorkshire Olympic great Alistair Brownlee on bringing back the Leeds Triathlon and adjusting to post-retirement life

That performance in the inaugural World Series event in Leeds in June 2016 with Alistair leading home Jonny was a prescient foretelling of what would come two months later on the Copacabana, when Alistair won gold and Jonny silver in a historic double for Leeds, Yorkshire and Team GB at the Rio Olympics.

Ten months further down the line they were back on home soil, giving the thousands who swarmed into Roundhay Park and crowded the roadsides into Millennium Square the chance to celebrate their local heroes with yet another one-two in the World Series event. It was fair to assume at that moment in time that Leeds was the epicentre of the triathlon world and the Brownlee brothers were at the controls.

Sport, however, is ever-evolving, and it would never be the same again. In the four editions of the race that followed, a Brownlee never graced the podium again. In 2021 it was the scene of Alistair’s final throw of the dice to make a fourth Olympics, his disqualification for an incident in the swimming leg in Roundhay Lake far from the fitting end his career in the Olympic distance deserved. The 2022 edition in Leeds would be the last. Planet triathlon had moved on.

But with his retirement from all forms of competition finalised in November, Yorkshire’s double Olympic champion is busy with new projects - including bringing a major triathlon back to his beloved city.

On Sunday August 3, together with brother Jonny, The Brownlee Foundation hosts the Leeds Triathlon in Roundhay Park.

And wouldn’t you know it - Alistair has designed the course and may even come out of retirement to compete.

“Not entirely sure whether I’m going to compete - we’ll see,” laughs the elder Brownlee when asked by The Yorkshire Post if he’ll be donning the swimsuit and running shoes again.

“I’ve worked quite hard with Leeds City Council to get it off the ground, and had a big input in designing the course, getting the feel right.

“I sat down with them and helped design the course, it was something I always really enjoyed, that course design element of it.”

The motivation for getting involved was his pride in his home city, and if year one goes well, the foundation may explore an elite element to it in future years. “Ultimately it was such a shame that we lost the World Series event,” continues Brownlee.

“The World Series is in some pretty big other cities around the world, so for Leeds to be involved in that for so long was great for the city.

“It was such an amazing event for Leeds, the city is only getting stronger and more popular in the sporting world, which is great for all of us who care about sport in Leeds.

“The concept of this is it’s just a mass participation triathlon, similar to the other mass participation events in Leeds whether that’s the Leeds 10k or the marathon, and a vehicle to encourage people to do sport.

“There’s zero elite element in the first year, but I’d love for there to be an elite element in the future.

“But this first year we just want to get the race started, provide the opportunity for people to compete and then we’ll work on that down the line.”

The Leeds Triathlon will raise money for the Brownlee Foundation which has given 75,000 youngsters across the country their first start in the sport since the brothers launched it in 2014.

“Triathlon is a great conduit to helping young people experience the sport but also helping them to experience something different and achieve more than they think,” says Alistair, who since retiring officially in November from ironman and longer-distance events, is keeping busy with business ventures and ambassadorial projects, as well as with the foundation.

“I must admit so far I’ve enjoyed some holidays I’ve not been able to enjoy during my career, like going skiing, things are starting to settle down and over the next few months and I’m able to get into a bit more of I guess what we could call a normal life.

“I am still finding my feet, it’s been a big step change for me of going from a life of being completely focused on sport to doing something different. I’m not complaining in any shape of form, I absolutely love what I’m doing and I’ve got lots of great opportunities but it is overwhelming after 18 years of competing.”

During his Olympic career he was an insatiable trainer, logging 35 hours a week.

So is he still training now? “Oh, of course,” he laughs, no doubt mindful he may need it if he’s competing on home soil again on August 3.

To get involved either as a participant or a volunteer visit www.leedstriathlon.com