Georgia Hamblett Athlete Ambassador

Have you always been into sport?

I've always been active, and my parents were very supportive at letting me try new things. I started swimming competitively when I was 10 and competed at county and regional level individually, but it was always very much a hobby, and I didn't take it that seriously. Growing up I also enjoyed hiking and mountain biking but didn't really run and hadn't cycled on a road bike until I started uni!

How did you first get into triathlon?

I'd always been interested in doing a triathlon, but didn't really have the opportunity until I started university and joined the University of Nottingham triathlon club. Here, I quickly became part of the performance squad at the uni and began to train more seriously in all three disciplines.

What has been your favourite race to date and why?

In 2022, I moved over to Northern Ireland for my placement year. This was such an amazing experience for me, and allowed me to grow a lot personally, and within sport. I took part in the Irish National Series and finished second in my age group at the end of season, achieving several overall female podium finishes. My favourite race was the Jailbreak Standard Distance in Cork, which included swimming from Spike Island (formerly a prison island) to the mainland. I love travelling and racing in Ireland allowed me to explore the country and race at the same time!

What is your proudest achievement?

When I first started tri, I very quickly went from zero to a hundred in terms of training, at a time when it wasn't mentally or physically healthy for me to do so. For the first few years of doing tri, I was definitely under fuelling, training compulsively, and not listening to my body. My proudest achievement is recognising this, taking a step back and making positive changes, focusing on health rather than fitness, and challenging certain behaviours within myself. I think even if other people have made you aware of this, no one can change these attitudes for you, and you have to be brave enough to make the changes yourself, no matter how uncomfortable it feels. When I moved to Ireland, I massively decreased my training, focused on strength and overall health and happiness rather than ticking off hours and miles, and made progress physically and mentally which I'm extremely proud of.

Have you ever had any racing disasters?

At one race in Ireland, I took my bike to one of the mechanics before the race to get my brakes tightened up as it was a very hilly course and the marshal had suggested I did this. I didn't test my bike after this and, needless to say, when I came out of transition and got on my bike, the front brake was rubbing horrendously the whole way round to the point that I actually couldn't get up most of the hills.

How do you overcome setbacks?

I try to remember to look at the bigger picture, and think of what you've achieved in the recent weeks or months, not just in that session or race. It's not always going to go to plan, but there usually are some positives to take away, or things that can be learnt from.

What advice do you wish you'd been given when you first started out?

I think triathlon appeals to people who are very hard-working, dedicated and compulsive in nature, but I wish I had been made better aware of where to draw the line between commitment and compulsion when I was first starting out. I think its only recently that things such as RED-S are being talked about more openly, and I think this is such a positive thing, and definitely something that was lacking when I first started. I also think I would have benefited from not comparing myself to others - their training, times, or nutrition - everyone has different needs and things that work for them, there's no point comparing to other people!

What are your goals?

I want to do as well as I can with the time I have available to train, while still enjoying all other aspects of life! For me, this includes focusing on qualifying and competing at international AG events, and competing at national AG races, and aiming to finish highly within these.

I've only competed in sprint and standard distance tris so far, but long term want to race half and full ironman, and complete other swim-bike-run based challenges.

Ultimately, my goal is to keep enjoying it and keep healthy.

Who inspires you?

In my first year of uni, I was lucky enough to train with 13x Ironman champion, Lucy Gossage. She was a massive inspiration as balanced training with working as an oncologist, and had a really positive outlook around sport.

Why work with Sundried?

I like that Sundried is keen to support athletes, and considers sustainability in their products. I now own loads of Sundried products, and love how comfortable they, how well they fit and how good a quality for money they are.