Episode 122: Pro Files with Georgia Taylor-Brown

This week on Another Triathlon Podcast, brought to you by maunaapparel, we sit down with Olympic medalist, SuperTri superstar, and long course newcomer Georgia Taylor-Brown. Fresh off a year that has taken her everywhere from Dubai to Phuket to Bahrain, Georgia joins us to talk about her transition season, the joy of racing without pressure, and why this unexpected year of gravel racing, T100 experiments, and twenty two races has completely reset her love for the sport.

In this conversation, Georgia takes us from her early days as a swimmer who never loved swimming, to being terrified on group rides, to becoming one of the most consistent forces in WTCS racing. She opens up about learning how to ride a bike from scratch, the years where she doubted she belonged, the Tokyo Olympics and how stepping away from the intensity of Olympic qualification has helped her rediscover why she started triathlon in the first place.

Highlights
 • Growing up swimming twelve to eighteen hours a week and building the engine that carried her career
 • Learning to ride a bike in cotton T shirts and hand me down shorts and getting dropped on every climb
 • Joining the British talent squad with no triathlon experience
 • The moment she finally felt she belonged in WTCS racing
 • Tokyo 2021 from injury to puncture to an Olympic silver medal
 • How gravel racing and park runs brought joy back into her training
 • Why 2024 was the year she needed to reset mentally
 • Her first impressions of the T100 series and what she learned the hard way about nutrition
 • Training alone, self coaching, and trying to fit intensity around twenty two races
 • Plans for 2025 including World Series racing, qualifying for Nice, potential T100 starts, and the long road back to LA 2028
 • Advice she lives by: don’t look sideways, focus on your own path
 • Life after triathlon and her dream of working in gravel or trail event organisation

Quickfire Q and A
 • The strangest thing she has eaten mid ride
 • The pro she would choose as a relay partner and why it is Jess Learmonth
 • The fourth discipline she would add to triathlon and why she would be world champion at faffing
 • Her pump up playlist from Whitney Houston to Nicki Minaj
 • The best advice she has ever been given

Follow the show: @anothertriathlonpodcast
 Jenna Caer: @jennacaer
 Josh: @joshmvernon
 Fede: @fedemultisport

Guest: Georgia Taylor-Brown
 Instagram: @georgiatb

Transcript

Jenna-Caer (00:01.009)
Welcome back to another Trathlon podcast brought to you by Mana Apparel. I'm joined as always by Josh and Fed, but this week we have got a special guest. We've got the wonderful Georgia Taylor Brown on. She has had quite the career so far with her success in the Olympics. And now we're seeing her dabbling a bit more in long course and spending time on that TT bike. And she's had a year that's had a bit of variety. So we wanted to talk to her, see what's going on in her world and ask her a few questions. But first let's say hi, Georgia, how are you doing?

Georgia (00:31.439)
Hello, I'm good. Thank you. Yeah, I'm happy to be on the podcast. Thank you for inviting me

Jenna-Caer (00:37.017)
Absolutely our pleasure. And you were just mentioning where are we chatting to you from?

Georgia (00:41.875)
I am in Dubai at the minute. yeah, stayed here. Well, I was here for the T100 and then I hopped over to Phuket in Thailand for the Laguna Phuket Triathlon and then back here for a week and then over to Bahrain and well, basically doing a tour of the Middle East, it seems.

Josh (01:00.502)
Thank

Jenna-Caer (01:01.277)
Apparently, yeah, and you were just mentioning the sunsets there. Pretty cool when you're out riding.

Georgia (01:06.424)
Yeah, it's really nice. We went out around 4.15 today, 4.30, and the sun sets around half five, and it's just so orange. It's incredible. The whole sky is orange and purpley, reddy, yellow colors. It's like Vince's suit in T100, basically. That's what it looks like. So he did a good job with that suit. So yeah, I do enjoy the sunsets here. It never gets old.

Jenna-Caer (01:26.087)
That's just the start.

Josh (01:27.213)
Ha ha ha!

Georgia (01:35.392)
And riding around and seeing the Burj Khalifa is just also incredible. If you go in the evening, the light shows start on the Burj Khalifa at 6 p.m. So if you're riding out in the evening, you get a bit of a free light show, a bit of entertainment while you're doing laps around the Maidan track here.

Jenna-Caer (01:55.997)
That's it.

Josh (01:56.014)
So think George is going to get a new sponsor after this episode drops. Travel Dubai is going to be reaching out pretty shortly.

Fed (01:59.462)
Yeah.

Jenna-Caer (02:01.691)
Yeah.

Fed (02:03.112)
Yeah.

Georgia (02:03.159)
Yeah, no, I'm not on the tourist board or anything, maybe I'm selling it to you.

Josh (02:06.851)
Yeah.

Fed (02:07.496)
Yeah.

Jenna-Caer (02:10.085)
Absolutely. Well, let's kind of take a look back and see what kind of got you started in triathlon at first. We've had a lot of athletes who did other sports and came to triathlon, but we're seeing more people getting started very young. Where did your journey start?

Georgia (02:11.768)
Thank

Georgia (02:25.239)
I'm probably middle ground I guess. did my first drive-in at 16. So not super young but also people come into it now a lot later. So I started as a swimmer mainly just I swam from a young age because my mum swam and I think she just wanted us all to know how to swim. So I probably started swimming at five or something just learning how to swim.

spent most of my time under the water messing around. And then I don't think I've ever really stopped swimming. I then went to like work my way up through different squads and clubs and then joined like a bigger squad in Manchester. And just I've never loved swimming, but I just kept going back because my friends were there and we had fun. And that's mainly the reason why I wanted to go swimming. I've never been a very good swimmer. Like I have to work.

really really hard. So that was it was hard to go but just the fact that my friends were there was yeah it was just easier. So yeah it swam and then I started running probably when I was about 14 I would say. So I just did some school cross-country races like firstly started with literally running at my school. We would run around the grounds and then

depending on how you did there, they then took you onto the local area schools cross country and then from there you went into the county cross country and then the national cross country. So I just worked through that. And I think I was good at cross country because I was swimming about like 18 hours a week. I was swimming so much. And so I've just had like a massive engine. I've never had any speed in me at all. Like put me on the track and I hate it. There's no speed, there's no bounce.

I don't have that in me, but I can just go all day because that's what I did in swimming. So, yeah, I just enjoyed the cross country and just plowing through the mud and then just, yeah, I was doing pretty well in that. And then mum kind of suggested to give triathlon a go because I already had two sports. So just add another one in. And then we went to a trial day. Back then it was the British Triathlon Talent Squad.

Georgia (04:51.446)
And so it was juniors, I think juniors and under 23s. I can't remember. It might have been 18 and under. So you went to a day where you did a 400 meter swim and a 1500 meter runtime trial on the track and your time then equated to points. And my times for those gave me the maximum amount of points.

But I was there and I was good at swimming and running, but I'd never done a triathlon before. And everybody trialing out for the squad had done triathlons. So I really didn't think I was going to get on the squad. And they kind of said to me, they were like, well, obviously like you're swimming and running is good, but you've never ridden a bike. I mean, I could ride a bike, but not a road bike and I'd not done a triathlon. And then, they called me the next day and said that I was on the squad. So then they gave me a bike.

to Lone and I just had to learn how to ride on the skinny tires and I called them then and yeah just practicing clipping in and out all the scary stuff and yeah it took me about two years I'd say to actually be able to stay in a bike group. It took me a while and I was just really really rubbish and then yeah and then that's kind of my journey was from there. I did my first travel at 16.

at Blenheim Palace and I came off my bike because I was in the front group and I got a bit excited, touched the girls wheel in front of me and flew off my bike. But I finished, I think I finished last and I think I walked some of the run but I couldn't let that be my only triathlon so yeah I think it was maybe it was a good way to start because it meant that everything from there was hopefully going to be better than that.

Fed (06:46.672)
Yeah, no, that's very... sorry, Josh. I was just saying that's very refreshing because a lot of people just see the Georgia Taylor Brown winning the fast athlete. And now that you're saying that you had no speed whatsoever, just a massive engine from swimming, that's very refreshing. But I wanted to ask you, when you stepped into the British youth trials, was it daunting, intimidating, just...

Josh (06:46.958)
It's amazing.

Fed (07:13.446)
Were you feeling a bit of a imposter syndrome of just people knowing how to ride a bike and actually being triathletes? And then here comes Young Georgia, who's an amazing swimmer and a runner. Like, how did you handle that? And because obviously now you're the athlete that you are, just super talented, but you, it seems that you were always like a super hardworking person.

Georgia (07:39.426)
sorry, I didn't get the end bit.

Fed (07:41.636)
I was just saying that it seems that you were always a super hardworking person and that like nothing scared you. You were like, okay, I cannot ride a bike, but here I am at trials.

Georgia (07:53.459)
Yeah, no, I definitely was scared, but I was always scared for the rides, for the bike rides, because, like I said, I was so, honestly, I was so useless on a bike. was terrible. And when you learn into have your cleats and clip in and out, you really do have to focus. And when it's all very new and when I'm around these people that are just messing around, having fun, cause they've ridden for years.

I was so nervous and I was so useless. Like on the hills I would get dropped. I remember we went on a camp in the Yorkshire Dales and we went up a really steep climb and I literally got halfway up and I had to get off my bike, I had to roll back down and I was like, right, no, try again, let's do this. And I just, I had to get up here. I was like, come on, come on, you can't walk. And I think actually I had to walk in the end and the amount of camps I went on and I had to get in the van because I was...

getting dropped from the group and I just couldn't take it. And I was so tired from all of the extra training, because we do massive training weeks when we went on the camps. And I remember just going to the coaches and just crying and being like, I can't do it today. I'm so tired. And sometimes, yeah, I would not be able to even start the ride. say, it's okay, like you can go in the van today and just follow and learn. So I'd just be sat in the van with one of the coaches eating jelly babies.

while everyone's out riding in the freezing cold weather of the UK. But yeah, I think I was just, I don't know, it's humbling. I was a good enough swimmer and runner that I could still enjoy the camps because I could keep up on those aspects of the triathlon. But when it came to the cycling, I was terrified. I hated it. I was so nervous. And also I was just riding in really crap stuff as well. Like I was riding in just

cotton t-shirts and running tights with cycling shorts over the top that were super, super old. So yeah, I was definitely not prepared for the weather. And then yeah, just over the years got more and more equipment because at first my mum didn't know whether I was gonna be doing it for a long time or not. So we obviously didn't buy like super nice stuff. So I just was, I would just ride in like the free t-shirts that you get from cross country races and.

Josh (10:01.486)
Thank

Georgia (10:16.893)
things like that. And now I look at kids and I'm like, but yeah, they've got really fancy stuff. I just had the basic stuff and yeah, literally wearing running tights underneath my cycling shorts and like really thin worn out cycling shorts that were secondhand from my sister. But yeah, now kids have the best gear. honestly, it's impressive. think you should go back to basics and learn how to ride in cotton socks.

Josh (10:43.121)
you

Jenna-Caer (10:44.669)
I'll have to it first.

Georgia (10:46.098)
Yeah, but yeah

Fed (10:46.214)
I agree.

Josh (10:47.798)
All those three watts giving away.

Georgia (10:51.184)
What's that sorry?

Josh (10:52.118)
all those free watts you were giving away back then.

Georgia (10:54.041)
Yeah, I know exactly. It was a good way to start though, wasn't it? It's like when I train in the winter in the UK, I will ride on my gravel bike with really like thick chunky tyres and like 30 PSI. Because I think it just makes you stronger, know, just all that extra weight in the winter and you've got to push through it then you get on your road bike for the race season and race wheels and you feel like you're flying. I love it so much. I love that feeling.

Josh (11:21.474)
Yeah, that's awesome. It's, one of the things that is really cool to hear you talk about now is cause I think we all know you as a very strong biker these days and to hear that that was such a struggle for you is probably going to be opening for people to, hear. if you just keep working at it, but where in your mind did the

mind shift take place where you're like, hey, I belong and I'm going to be one of the best in the world at this. And like, was there a moment there early on in your career or where did that switch really flip for you?

Georgia (11:59.639)
god, I don't know. don't know if it's ever flipped. I'm not sure. I still... I know, but like, I don't know. I've never really thought like, I belong here. Like, I'm still very hard on myself and I can still always be better. Even things that I've achieved, it's amazing, but I don't...

Josh (12:04.268)
By the way, you're one of the best in the world.

Jenna-Caer (12:06.37)
Hahaha.

Georgia (12:25.426)
I don't know, I'm still like, oh, that's not good enough, like I could be better. I'm really hard on myself, like I do curse myself a lot and I'm like, stupid girl, Georgia, work harder, just keep pushing. So yeah, I do have this constant battle in my head. But yeah, I don't know whether that ever really flipped, when I, maybe in 2018 when I finished third in the overall series and that was...

Jenna-Caer (12:53.949)
Thank

Georgia (12:54.898)
Like that I couldn't quite believe because I didn't expect that at all. That year for me was just about doing World Series and getting experience and understanding it a bit more and trying to push my way to the front because I think my first World Series was Hamburg 2017 and I was so nervous. Like I'd watched these women race on TV and they were my idols and now I'm in a by-group with them and I was like, oh God, I shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be here.

And so I literally just put myself at the back and I think the whole race came together. There's like 50 girls in this group. And I just went to the back of the bike group. was like, okay, yeah, this is where I belong. I should stay here. I'm not going anywhere near the front. And so, yeah, I think it's, I don't know. I think maybe after that year in 2018, when I came third in the series and I started to race more towards the front and maybe...

dictating the races a little bit more, not just me, but along with other girls, especially on the bike. Maybe that's when I thought, okay, yeah, I belong here. Like this is what I can do. yeah, I think that that probably maybe was a switch when I knew I could dictate the races is when I was like, okay, I belong here now.

Jenna-Caer (14:09.115)
That's fantastic. And definitely what comes through as you're talking about this is just that resiliency, like mentally kind of staying strong and okay, I can't do this right now, but I'm going to keep pushing forward. And I think that's something that really came through at the Tokyo Olympics. You had some adversity during the race, it sounds like, but still managed to come through and get the silver and then gold with the team. Can you tell us a little bit about what that whole kind of Olympic experience was and how you did kind of stay strong to get that result in the end?

Georgia (14:38.193)
I think it was a strange Olympics because for me, because I got injured 11 weeks out and I got a stress response in my femur. And maybe in a way I think that's probably a blessing in disguise because the pressure around an Olympic Games is huge and you know, like not just the outside pressure but also internally, you know, you've this is it, you know, it's you've waited four years for this, you've worked for this and you think

Four years I've waited for this. I have to perform because otherwise what's the point? a waste. So you just put so much pressure on yourself and it is one day, one race. And as much as you try not to see it that way, it still is that it is one day, one race. And yeah, I think in a way getting injured meant that I took the pressure off myself because going into that me and well, we won the test event. We didn't, we got disqualified but.

I was going really well. I should have been predicted to be on the podium. But then with that injury, was like, but there's no way I've missed six weeks of running. I've literally had to get prepared for an Olympics in five weeks. I can't do that. There's no way. for me, that race was, we did everything possible to get me ready to hopefully perform well.

Jenna-Caer (15:37.021)
I was just about to say that.

Georgia (16:06.309)
But I just focused on the swim. I just wanted a good swim. was like, okay, if I can have a good swim, I'll be happy. Because also I knew if I had a good swim, that would put me in the front bike group. And then if I was in that, the way that the races were going then was that it was a breakaway and we were getting maybe 90 seconds to two minutes. So maybe I would have hung on for like fifth or sixth. But yeah, I think I just took the pressure off myself because I didn't expect much from myself at all.

So yeah, when I got the puncture, I genuinely did laugh to myself. For a moment I was like, oh yeah, obviously I've got a puncture. Not only was this run up into the games terrible, but now I've got a puncture, this is just fantastic. This is exactly what I want. It's raining and we did all of this heat prep for nothing. We stood on the start line with our dry robes on. I was like, of course this is happening today.

So yeah, I did kind of laugh myself and I was also just, I don't know, I was quite relaxed. I'm not the most relaxed person. I can be a bit stressy. But I was, I don't know, I was just relaxed about it because I was like, well, it is what it is now. There's nothing I can do. I looked at the wheel stop and I quickly worked out in my head, okay, if I stop, I'm losing way too much time. And I've only got two K to go of riding.

And I like ran through the rest of the route in my head. was like, okay, I can do this as a long straight. I can just ride hard on the straight. And then when it gets to the corners, I'll just have to be careful. And then, just set off running and just ran quite hard, I guess, but it just felt comfortable. And I just thought, okay, just stay focused and let's see how it goes. yeah. And then I just, I ended up in third position and I could see Katie in front and she wasn't too far away. But once I got into third, I was like,

Whoa, okay, this is an Olympic medal. This is incredible. And then when I was kind of closing in on Katie, I thought, okay, well, this could be a silver medal. And so I just picked my moment to go past her and just kind of used it on the, there was a slight downhill on the blue carpet section by transition. And I just thought, well, I'll just use that because it's free speed. So I just use that as my moment to pass her and yeah, and then I just.

Georgia (18:28.675)
hung on but honestly I just couldn't believe it. I crossed the finish line and I was crying and I just felt every single emotion because I was so happy but it was just so weird. I felt everything all at once and I couldn't believe it.

Fed (18:47.464)
That's incredible. I was watching that race, well, we all were, and that's very cool to hear how you experienced it because looking from the outside, you look very poised, calm, collected, like, she knows what she's doing. She punctures and then she has a plan in her head, but just knowing that you are just going with the flow and seeing what could happen, that's very interesting.

I guess in ITU, well now WTCS, the races are very reactive and you have to go when everybody goes. And there are certain times where you cannot go, where your body's just at the limit. But it always seems to me that you always have that...

Georgia (19:26.697)
Mm-hmm.

Fed (19:35.64)
extra gear like you were mentioning. Some people cannot go on the slide downhill on the blue carpet. Do you reckon that's because of your massive engine and just the use of just cross-country that you can always tap into that extra bit of speed?

Georgia (20:09.714)
What do you extra kick?

Georgia (20:18.764)
and think in Tokyo I crossed in third and I thought, I could have maybe tried to go on this bit. Then I would have been really disappointed in myself and upset with that. do you know, if I had tried to overtake Katie, got into second and then she overtook me again and I ended up third, I would have been happy anyway because I knew that at least I tried. And that's what it always is for me. It's like, okay, well, at least I gave it a go. And I had this thought in my head, it came in.

and I thought, okay, I'm gonna try and go, I did it, but it didn't pay off, then that's fine. Like, yeah, it's upsetting, but at least I tried. And yeah, it's the same with every race, as long as I really, really try and give it my everything, and maybe the result isn't there in the end and it's not what I want, but at least I did try and I know that I turned every single stone in that race.

Josh (21:14.936)
Do you feel like what's keeping you fresh at this part of your career coming out of the Olympics and everything that came with it? And I would imagine you were pretty overwhelmed with all the media and everything coming out of Tokyo. Do you think keeping your life balanced and doing the gravel races like you talked about and putting the fat tires on and then going to do some park runs and things like that has kept you fresh at this point of your career, especially in the short course? as we age, short course is where we're supposed to be.

getting slower and you continue to compete at that world. Do you think the balance in everything you do is keeping you fresh and keeping you competitive in all aspects of all the racing that you've been doing this year?

Georgia (21:55.777)
Yeah, think so. Definitely this year. I knew that I needed this year away from the sport. I've done so many races this year, so I haven't been away from the sport. just racing in a different way. And honestly, at the start of the year, I didn't know what this year would look like. I didn't know whether

I was going to race the triathlon or not. I genuinely didn't. And I was just like a bit lost and I didn't know what I was doing. And then yeah, just kind of got the bug for racing again. But I knew that I needed to step away from the top end racing of like world series and chasing points and criteria and results. And it was all like, I didn't want this year to be about performance at all. I wanted it to be about

having fun and that was not so much like physically but more the mental side because it is super super intense you know it was 2021 was the Olympics and having the injury before that and then racing and that is very stressful that takes a lot out of you because you're so I was so focused for those five weeks going into Tokyo to get everything right and then racing that and then the year after we had Commonwealth Games

And I was also trying to chase the world title. And so that was another intense year. And then 2023, after 2022 having like heartbreaking my personal life and 2023 was just a bit of a crazy year and starting to date Vince and stuff. And I just wanted to be happy. And so, and then I got injured again. And so that was just like a bit of a crazy and confusing year as well at the same time. Cause you're like, yeah, but

I'm happy now, so why am I not racing well and why am I getting injured? I thought a happy athlete is a fast athlete, but it just wasn't the case. And I think over the years it just came back to bite me in that year. So the body is quite amazing in telling you when you need to stop and take a break. So yeah, it was just very intense and then being injured and then having the calf tear and then I had surgery on my ankle.

Georgia (24:07.34)
So I didn't run for four months. And then again, it was into 2024 and I had to try and qualify for the games and I wouldn't have wanted it to be that way. know, it's nice if I could have qualified in 2023, got it out of the way and then really focus on the games. But yeah, I had to qualify in 24. And yeah, was just, it's hard then because I really wanted to go to Paris and I thought I could win in Paris, but to be able to peak almost twice in one year for...

the selection race and then in Paris is quite hard to do. And I, yeah, I just, think I maybe ran out of time in Paris. I just wasn't running, hadn't ran for long enough to be able to perform to my best. But yeah, just, knew at the start of 24 that that was going to be a really hard year. So I knew that I was going to take 2025 to just be away from the sport and do things that I enjoy doing and yeah, new things like.

the gravel racing and yeah, I think it's fun and it's also really, I just think it's good to do it. Yeah, one it's fun, but it's also really good for your skills and it's a different style of racing. it's you start and it's a hundred and whatever distance you do, but maybe 120 K is all out. And when would you ever do that? You wouldn't just go out the door and do 120 K or all out. just wouldn't. And so I love it. It's so good. And I would just try and hang on for as long as I can.

And you just learn so much and meet some amazing people as well. And I will keep doing gravel races for as long as I can. yeah, I'm really trying to sell gravel races to people because I think they're just, they're definitely just great to do. So yeah, it was, it was really a strange year of not knowing what I was going to do. And in the end doing, I don't know, by the time I racing Qatar, that's 22 races. So it's a lot of.

It's a lot of racing. can't even fit that into an Instagram post. I'll be too short. yeah, no, it's been a busy year, but I've also loved it. know, people are like, are you doing all these races back to back? And I don't know. It's just fun. It's different because I'm not racing for a result. I don't care if I come last at all. It doesn't matter to me. I just love to race. I'm just trying to enjoy.

Fed (26:07.367)
Yeah.

Josh (26:09.39)
Running out of tiles.

Jenna-Caer (26:09.917)
Right?

Georgia (26:31.806)
this period of racing without pressure while I can because I do want to come back for LA. So I know that it's going to be an intense two year period leading into that of getting points again. And yeah, so it's going to be quite intense. So I just, I'm just trying to enjoy this year as much as I can. And I'm very, yeah, I'm, I know that I'm very, I'm very fortunate to be in this position that I can take a year off and just enjoy doing the things that I love.

Yeah, it was almost like going back to grassroots, know, just doing the sport for like the reason why I started it. It's just to have fun with your friends, go out there, go hard and that's it. It's as simple as that for me. I like to race like a kid and just get on the start line, go hard until you blow and then that's it, the end, go home.

Fed (27:20.552)
This

Jenna-Caer (27:20.795)
That's fantastic. Yeah, I'm hearing you on the gravel side. After Kona this year, I started playing on my gravel bike and doing a race that I'll have to do on it. And I fell off at about 50 % of the time trying to see how hard I can push the corners and stuff and try to work on those skills. It's such a blast just to switch it up and have something different, just a mental refresh for sure.

Georgia (27:33.77)
Yeah.

Georgia (27:39.134)
Yeah, it's so much fun and I love just like unclipping around corners and you just feel like a pro when you can do that even though I do not look like a pro but I'm like, like a mean Matthew Vanderpaul.

Jenna-Caer (27:47.933)
Sorry.

Yeah, there we go. Now let's take a step back before we go into kind of the long course side of things. You, it's funny that you say you don't have the speed, but I think you're one of the most successful women when it comes to SuperTri racing, which is definitely a lot shorter and faster than the Olympic distance there. What was kind of your experience with SuperTri? Like what did you like about it and how was it different from the Olympic training and racing?

Fed (27:52.424)
I'm

Georgia (28:18.696)
love SuperTry because again, like I said, I like to race like a kid. You know, watch kids do cross-country races and they're all out for 100 meters and then they walk because they don't judge the pace at all. They just go and then that's it. They're done. And then they walk and then they're like, okay, I've got energy. I'll go again. And that's just how I like to race. And for me, that's what SuperTry is. You it's just, you go and you see what happens. You can't calculate it at all. can't look at...

Jenna-Caer (28:31.165)
Yeah.

Fed (28:34.653)
Yeah.

Georgia (28:48.819)
figure out your pace or anything. just, people try and they're like, okay, for the first round, I'll go a bit easier, play it safe. Next round, go a harder. And then all out for the last one. I'm like, I'm the opposite. I'm going all out for the first one. And then literally just hang on for dear life. Cause that's just how I like to race. But I'm not smart at all in how I race. And maybe I've lost a lot of races and given races away over the years. But it's just how I like to race. don't know. don't, I don't really do anything off of.

power or heart rate, whatever, I just go and feel. And for me, Supertry is exactly that, it's just fun, you you just go out, you see what happens and that's just, it's just the way I like to race and it's just chaos and there's no time to think at all. And you just have to do, you know, you just have to jump on a wheel or follow the feet or whatever. yeah, but I always say I don't know how I won Supertry three times because

My transitions are so embarrassing. I can't even, I can't look at them. I see videos back and I get so angry. like, what are doing? Why are you still here, Georgia? Why are you still stood there? And it's just, I don't know what it is. just, maybe transition for me is a period where can just take my time. But other people definitely aren't doing that. I watch other people do their transitions and I'm like, oh my God, that would be.

I would love to be able to do a transition like that. So yeah, I honestly don't know how I've won it with the transitions I've had. But yeah, it's just good fun. It's just chaos and that's why I love it. That's what I love about SuperTray Racing.

Josh (30:31.81)
You feel like your, your role within the super tri community has changed over the years. And I, that comes from one of the things I got to witness in Chicago this year, whereas I think you showed up to the race and we're getting ready and I could hear your voice stand out and you were starting to kind of not yell at, but let the other younger athletes. And there were a lot of young girls and guys in the racing this year, this season in particular, but I think you were making sure they were.

keeping everything nice and tidy and clean and making sure their gels weren't all over the ground. like your prep area was nice and clean and neat and getting ready for the race. But do you see yourself as somebody that they're looking up to and as a mentor and you got to kind of perform in a different way when you're around them?

Georgia (31:01.256)
Thank

Georgia (31:11.144)
Do you like you're mum? So I'm like guys we need to be putting things in the bin, you know, just keep the area tidy for everyone So I feel more I just feel old I feel that way I'm racing against

athletes that are like 17. And I was saying this to Vince because he was like, oh, I should have done some super try this year. And I was like, Vince, you've got like 20 years on some of the athletes. Like, I think it's maybe best not to do super try. But yeah, I just, I do feel a lot older now. But yeah, it's just, it's nice to be around them as well and be around the younger athletes. It's just kind of fresh to see.

how they're racing and yeah, they do come up to me and ask for some advice and stuff, but I'm like, I don't know, cause I don't know what I'm doing myself, you know, just go out, have fun, don't think about it, just enjoy it. And I think that's, yeah, that's just the way I like to race. don't, can't really give much advice cause I do, I am just like, well, just see what happens, you know, that's how I like to, that's how I like to race.

Fed (32:30.088)
There's a beauty about just going all out and not thinking about it. that's, I think that's very special from SuperTry because it's just head down, push hard as long as you can for as long as you can and then see what happens. So I love SuperTry for that. speaking about transitions, does Vince give you a hard time with transitions and who operates a coffee machine before the long bike rides?

Georgia (33:00.776)
Does he give me a hug? No, he's like, George. Like just sort of, you know, rolls his eyes. But I just like, I know, but I'm trying, I'm really trying. And then yeah, the coffee machine is obviously Vince. He does all of that. He just, he loves making coffee. So I don't feel bad asking for him to make coffee because he really enjoys the process of it. And I see how involved he is in it. So.

Yeah, he does enjoy that, we do bit of everything. We mix it up, coffee machine or V60 or AeroPress. We try different things, but it is nice to be able to just have a good coffee at home. I'm very lucky to have that.

Jenna-Caer (33:44.958)
Absolutely, can't go wrong with that. Now, you've made a bit of a transition too in this off year, you call it with 22 races, but we've seen you do more at the long distance and spending time on your TT bike. How has that experience been in the T100 so far? Because it's definitely some fast and furious racing, but in between that Olympic distance and Ironman kind of feel.

Georgia (34:08.623)
Yeah, it's been interesting. My first T100 was London and that was a bit of a shambles with the puncture. So that was a shame, but also I like, I'm not even in the race anyway. Like the girls are, I just didn't really know what to expect at all. And I was asking the girls before the start of the race, I was like, how hard is the swim? Like, I don't know how hard you go out. I can't, I don't know how to judge my pace at all.

Like is it a World Series start where it's all out to the boy and then it kind of settles down? And no one would really give me an answer. like, God, I don't know what to expect. And then yeah, it was just, it was a little bit messy at the start of the mean, there's not many of us, but it was, it was definitely quite humbling that first race in London. Cause I just didn't, I think for me, I didn't understand the importance of the nutrition side of it. For an Olympic distance, you can kind of.

get away with whatever, know, even if you don't take any fuel on the bike, you can pretty much get to the end of the run and be okay if you've fueled well enough the day or two before. But you definitely can't in the longer distances. And I learned that very, very quickly. So yeah, it was just kind of trying to understand that. And then for his use, I had a better swim and my bike was...

better but then the run was a disaster again and I just got really bad stomach pains and then after that I was like okay now I have to really focus on nutrition and figure this out because not only is it just awful to feel this way on the run and not be able to run at all because your stomach hurts it's just not a nice feeling like I don't want to be in pain and so yeah we kind of figured it out but I'm still learning it's hard and

Marbella was hard and that was another humbling experience and the bike is super hard. Like I thought, I'm all right on the bike. Like I should be okay. But then you go on a TT bike and I'm not okay at all. I'm really not very good. But for me, I'm enjoying the challenge of that and trying to get closer and closer. in Dubai, like I was getting a bit closer again. I was only 30 seconds down out the water and the bike I try my best to keep in.

Georgia (36:26.607)
contact with the girls at the front and so yeah I'm definitely getting closer so I've got one more shot in Qatar so I really I'm like come on I just I need to get the front of the bike group and just be in the bike group see what it's like and even if I only last 10k at least I got there and that's the goal like for me going into Qatar I just want to be able to be in that front group and yeah like I said if it's for two minutes or if it's for 30 minutes

Jenna-Caer (36:44.381)
.

Georgia (36:53.753)
I don't care as long as I'm just there to experience it and I did it and then the rest, like I can just work on that in the future.

Josh (37:02.766)
mean, you look at your seasons with 22 races. Have you had a proper build for any of these races?

Georgia (37:09.669)
No, I haven't, I think that's the thing. can't, it's hard because I'm not really trained properly this year. Like I'm self-coached this year because I just decided it was the best way. I could have had my coach set me sessions, but I almost felt bad because I didn't know what the year was gonna look like. So that's a bit unfair to say, oh, can you coach me? Yeah, yeah, okay, so what are you doing? Well, I don't know. Okay, well, I don't know how to coach you for that.

Josh (37:10.83)
.

Georgia (37:38.743)
It was more just like I felt bad asking him to set sessions when he hasn't got a clue what I'm doing and I don't even know what I'm doing with my life. So it was just easier for me to do it myself and that has been hard and it's meant that I've not really done any intensity. just trained, like I've been, I have trained, I'm fit, you know, I've been consistent with my training. I've done 25 hour weeks for most of the year, which is what I would usually do. It's just I haven't had the intensity in there because

Self-coaching, it's just, it's hard to set my own sessions and motivate myself and not, like when you're not with the group and then also with the amount of races I've had, it's hard to then actually get some proper sessions done. So yeah, everything this year is, I'm doing it off of like the minimum, I guess, because I'm not doing anything truly focused around any sort of distance.

So yeah, I don't expect much from myself this year, but it's not that I'm unfit at all, because I am definitely fit. It's just that I'm not sharp and I'm not doing the specific stuff to get you to be able to race with the girls at the top. So yeah, I'm doing the best I can off the minimum.

Fed (38:53.864)
I wanted to ask you something, you know, coming from Team GB and everything super structured, there's a lot of competition and obviously we all know the qualifying process for the Olympics is probably the hardest out of all triathlon federations. And now, obviously this year it's been like a mental break and you look genuinely happy. I think personally, your personal life and of course as an athlete.

Probably, well, we talked about this on the podcast that maybe next year is going to be like, watch out because Georgia Taylor Brown is coming with a vengeance for everything. So I think it's really good for you that you're taking this year away from the pressure, so to speak, and just enjoying the process of learning the TT bike and all of that.

The question right now is, on a T100 race or over a 70.3, what was the hardest lesson you had to learn fuel-wise over the long period of time?

Georgia (39:59.88)
I think definitely the fueling has been... I started over fueling in London and phrase use I over fueled because

I know, had a plan because I raced Bahrain 70.3 last year so I had a plan from the nutritionist and it worked in Bahrain. I had no tummy issues, I had enough energy to get to the finish line and I don't know, I just panicked. I was like, god, well now I'm racing against all the good girls so I need to take more. That makes sense. I need more energy and that is absolutely not how it works. I am so stupid. It's just not how it works at all.

So more is definitely more and it's not it's not a way to get faster So yeah, I just panicked and I just was just putting more carbs in my drink taking more gels and I think then that had a negative effect and just gave me a bad stomach and I think yeah, it's just like instantly I would feel at like 8 to 10 K in the T100

All of sudden my stomach would just feel so full and bloated and I would just feel like I need to be sick and then it would just like cramp so hard and almost like I just wanted to bend over and then from there then my legs would just go like there was nothing in them. It's like all the energy was just cut off from my legs and it was trying to focus on going to my stomach and breaking down all of these carbs I'd put in. So I definitely had too much. think I was

trying to do like 160 grams an hour on the bike and it's way too much. I weigh like 55 kilos. I can't physically, I can't do that, but I didn't, I just didn't work out the math. So I was like, well, let's put an extra gel in here and an extra one in here. And then, yeah, and then I was just panicking. So then I learned, I was like, okay, let's figure this out. And then when I started to speak to people, they're like, that's a lot, like you don't need that. And so I spoke to a nutritionist and he was like,

Georgia (42:05.408)
Let's go back to basics and let's just start with 80 and then we can work from there. So that's kind of where I'm at now. So yeah, I've gone back to just 80 grams an hour, so half day. And so that is definitely working. And I think there's still room for improvement. You know, I still need to figure it out. Maybe I could have a little bit more and the timings of things, but I'm still quite relaxed with it. I don't want it to be, you know, I don't want it to be too intense this year.

because I'm still trying to just have fun with it, but I also don't want to have stomach issues. So yeah, it's working for now what I'm doing, but yeah, I think we could probably try and make things a little bit better in the future if I do more of these races.

Jenna-Caer (42:49.563)
Yeah, absolutely. speaking of the future then, what does next year look like? Is it to be back into the Olympic focus? Are you still going to do a couple long course? What are you looking at? Or do you know at this point?

Georgia (43:01.826)
Yeah, I kind of, I've like gone through some of the races, wrote some of them down. I definitely will get back in to do some World Series races. If I can, I don't have any points, so, and right now I'm probably ranked like seventh Brit, so I need to hopefully try and get a wild card or something from World Triathlon to be able to get back into racing World Series. So yeah, I will try and do some World Series races.

three or four of them just to get back into it and also collect some points. But yeah, more just to learn again and find my feet. And then I'll do, I'll definitely still do some gravel races, some cross country running races. Yeah, maybe some T100s. I'd like to do 70.3 Worlds in Nice. So yeah, I'd be trying to qualify for that and do that. But yeah, I'll be back to doing more of the

Olympic distance style racing next year. Not completely focused on that. I still want to try and have fun and do a bit of everything, but next year I'll definitely be more focused and have a coach again and do proper training because then I need to start collecting points for the Olympics. It's crazy to even think that I've got to start collecting points for the Olympic Games when it's in 2028, but yeah, you have to start quite early, like two years out. So yeah, that's the plan for next year is to...

get back into the World Series and yeah, just have fun with it. know, just try different things, see what it's all about. I mean, it's been a running race and that's definitely not the way I like to race. So I would like to try and get in and change that a little bit. If I can, it's not easy to do alone. So finding a group of girls that want to make it a of a breakaway again, and that will be fun.

So yeah, I'll still kind of be doing a bit of everything but definitely not as many races as I have done this year because even though it's been fun I don't know if I would recommend it to people because it's been a logistical nightmare. There's been a lot of planning and making sure that everything and like triple checking all my bookings like okay is this the right date? So yeah, it's been fun. I've enjoyed it but it has been chaos.

Josh (45:25.07)
but having some fun with your suits. Let's talk about the two of you have had quite the season when it comes to your custom suits and all that. just even like before we started today, you're like, oh, I got my 90 minute ride in. a little late. we, I think you said fuf or something like that. the words of Georgia Taylor Brown, like let's talk about like, cause you use that as one of your kits, like just the different things. Like how fun was that process this year with the two of you?

Georgia (45:54.016)
I love it so much. Vince started designing his at the start of the year and it's just a local company in Girona so it's super easy. We can go to the offices and sit down with them and just have fun. know, we can walk through the whole process of sitting in the room designing it, actually being there with the material, going through all measurements. So that's really, really cool. And he started designing them and I was like, that's something I've always wanted to do. And you can't do that in World Series. Obviously it's just the British suit.

that's it. But I do like to mess around with my fashion and just, every time, if I put an outfit on, people are like, it's very you. I'm like, I don't know if that's a good thing or not. Like, I'm gonna pretend that's a compliment, but sometimes I do look like I've been into a kid's dress-up box and just gone, da-da-da, okay, today I'm gonna be a princess. So yeah, I just, like messing around with things. I like doodling and like drawing stuff on literally pen and paper, coloring stuff, so.

And yeah, it was just fun to be able to do that and have all these ideas in my head down and made into a suit. So I've just, yeah, I think, I don't know if they, well, they definitely do enjoy designing them and making them, but they'll send ideas back and I'm like, okay, can we add this and do this and do this? And I think they're like, God, there's so much work to do here.

I have this vision in my head and they don't really see it at first because they're like, I don't know if that's going to work. And then in the end, like they bring it all together and they're like, okay, actually, yeah, it really works. made it work. So, no, I've, really enjoyed doing it. It's good fun. And I've managed to, we've managed to get one ready for Qatar. So it's been a quick turnaround, but there will be one final suit.

Jenna-Caer (47:44.583)
That's incredible. That'd be so much fun just to play around. I've been doing kind of the same thing and it's fun when you actually see it come to life, right?

Georgia (47:51.986)
Yeah, yeah, it's really cool. And yeah, just making them like add more layers and changing things. And no, I just I really, I really enjoy doing it. So it's been good to be able to do that this year before going back to World Series and have to wear the plain navy suit again.

Jenna-Caer (48:09.401)
Yeah, definitely. Well, we've got a couple of quickfire questions that we like to ask the pros that we have come on here. And we'll start off with what's the weirdest thing you've ever eaten during training or racing? Has it ever been like you've stopped at a gas station in some odd location and just had to get something in?

Fed (48:09.736)
Yeah

Georgia (48:29.613)
God, don't know. Well, sometimes rides in the UK, we would have a full like sit down and we'd be there for an hour in the cafe and trying to warm up, taking all our clothes off, putting them on radiators to dry. And yeah, we would have like, I don't know, omelet and chips or something and then take something off the cake trolley and you're leaving, you're like, my God, I cannot breathe at all. So they can be quite intense stops, but I do, yeah, I do miss a...

a British stop of having like a sausage and egg sandwich or something. They were the massive sausage and egg sandwich is just so nice. But yeah, I don't know if there's anything like super weird that I've had. never, I mean, I've not stopped at like a Michelin star restaurant on a ride. But yeah, I'd say the British cafe stops are the best ones.

Fed (49:16.381)
system.

Jenna-Caer (49:16.509)
you

Jenna-Caer (49:20.357)
Yeah. and I trained for my first Ironman when I was living in Aberdeen, Scotland, and the sausage rolls were a frequent kind of on a cold rainy ride. It's like you just want something filling and warm out there.

Georgia (49:25.599)
Georgia (49:31.749)
Yeah, yeah, it's so good. You do need something warm and yeah, a sausage roll definitely hits the spot.

Jenna-Caer (49:35.677)
Definitely.

Awesome. If you had to race a triathlon as a pair with another pro, who would it be? Now, this could either be someone who pushes you to go faster or just someone that it takes the time you want to spend the time with them that it takes to do a triathlon because they're fun.

Georgia (49:54.891)
Um, it's probably gonna be Jess Lee a month. Cause it's just like, yeah, would just be, it would be easy to do it with her cause it would be fun, but it'd also be absolutely savage because she just doesn't understand, she just goes so hard and you're like, oh my God, can't, everything's like a rush, you know, she's always in a rush. I'm like, can we just calm down? Like even before Marbella, we did a bit of a swim wreck in the sea and she's like, come on, let's go, let's go.

Jenna-Caer (50:01.086)
last.

Georgia (50:23.07)
What are we rushing for Jess? We've got all day. We've literally got nothing to do. I was like, just stop rushing me. Just calm down. But she's just always in a rush. So yeah, she would definitely, she would be good to race alongside. She'd really push me. And I think that would be, that would be fun. And she'd have some good chat along the way.

Jenna-Caer (50:30.097)
Yeah.

Jenna-Caer (50:43.724)
Perfect. Now, if you were to add a sport to a triathlon, add a fourth sport, what would be one that would give you the advantage over your competitors?

Georgia (50:54.75)
I'm not very good at anything else. A fourth sport. Hmm, I don't know. God, I don't know. What do you think? What have you had in the past?

Jenna-Caer (51:09.117)
Anything from hockey to computer programming to dance-off.

Josh (51:12.344)
Thanks.

Georgia (51:13.278)
I'm huge.

Josh (51:16.782)
gonna solve it.

Georgia (51:19.966)
If faffing could be a sport, I would be Olympic champion. Like I faff so hard. I don't know what I do, but just time flies and Vince is fast asleep in bed and I'm still in the bathroom washing my face. I've been in there for 45 minutes and I'm like, I don't know what I've been doing. It just, I'd say just faffing. I'm good at faffing around and achieving absolutely nothing.

Jenna-Caer (51:23.131)
There we go.

Jenna-Caer (51:27.567)
you

Jenna-Caer (51:41.917)
That's all.

Jenna-Caer (51:46.61)
Perfect.

Georgia (51:48.668)
and not understanding where the time's gone, but I'm really good at that.

Jenna-Caer (51:52.936)
Fantastic, we will take it. Do you have a guilty pleasure song or a genre of music that really gets you pumped up before races or a big event?

Georgia (52:04.537)
Ehhmmm

What do I like to listen to? I like, I don't know, I like to listen to, sometimes I like bit of Whitney Houston, just like dancing around, listening to her. Or I do like a bit of Nicki Minaj as well, just trying to rap to her music and keep up and it's like fast paced, it is quite, it does get me in the mood to race sometimes. And yeah, I'd say, but I'd say Whitney Houston, I quite like her. I remember we listened to her before.

I listened to it before the Tokyo Olympics and it was like Dance With Somebody. It's not the best song to listen to but it worked.

Jenna-Caer (52:40.477)
Mm-hmm.

That's so good.

Jenna-Caer (52:48.807)
Hey, it definitely worked with a few metals at that a little bit. And then the final question there is just what's one piece of advice you've been given over the years that's really resonated with you?

Josh (52:51.47)
You

Georgia (52:52.239)
Yeah.

Georgia (53:02.653)
I'd say don't look sideways. That's the advice I try and live by. It's so easy, especially with social media, to look at what everyone else is doing. But just look forward, just focus on what you're doing. Because what this person's doing might not work for me, but it works for them. And people are always trying to get other ideas from other people, which is great sometimes, but don't get pulled into that, especially...

For juniors and kids, it's so easy to see someone doing something else and you're like, they're doing that, so maybe I need to try that. But yeah, I'd say the biggest advice is, yeah, don't look sideways. Just focus on yourself and what you need to do.

Josh (53:48.738)
And how about a long time from now when you're no longer professionally racing in triathlon? What is Georgia Taylor Brown doing?

Georgia (53:57.953)
Absolutely nothing because Vince is going to be out there earning all the money. He's got loads of ideas and he wants to work so that's fine. No I really don't know I always thought I would be a physio but I don't know if I want to be a physio anymore. I think I would like to be working in events like gravel events or trail running events because I've enjoyed doing them so much and

Jenna-Caer (54:02.461)
Thank

Georgia (54:28.103)
being around people doing them just for the enjoyment of it and being around friends and the challenge of just being able to say they've done that and they worked hard for it. They crossed the finish line and they did it. And that is so special in the amount of people doing sport now, just because it's something that they've challenged themselves. You know, like, okay, I'm entering this trail race in five months time and I'm getting ready for it and I'm doing it.

Jenna-Caer (54:28.157)
Mm-hmm.

Georgia (54:53.692)
And that I find so special and it's like, love sport for that and how it brings everyone together. And so I'd love to be able to be a part of that in some way, whether it's helping to organize the gravel events, trail running events, whatever it is. I would really like to do that. I definitely don't see myself being a coach at all. I know a lot of people go into coaching, but I just don't have the patience. know, I'm not, I'm not a patient person. I'd be like, just do it. It's easy. Why can't you do it?

Jenna-Caer (55:22.672)
So.

Georgia (55:23.323)
So I would be really, really bad, especially with kids. was like, just do it. It's really simple. Why can't you do this already? So I don't have the patience for that. But if I could be involved in helping people achieve their goals, then I think that would be super, super cool.

Fed (55:23.4)
You

Jenna-Caer (55:40.733)
Mm-hmm.

Jenna-Caer (55:44.477)
That's fantastic. Well, you've been so generous with your time here and we definitely appreciate it. Where's the best way for people to follow you on all the adventures you're doing around the world?

Georgia (55:54.683)
Instagram, just Georgia TV. But also I probably post on Strava more. I'm always putting photos and captions. I'm not great with Instagram. I go in and out of using it. But yeah, every Sunday I'm off Instagram. I don't go on Instagram on a Sunday. It's like my day of no social media. yeah, but Strava, I enjoy Strava. I don't follow many people, but I like to post on there. And it's just like a little...

training diary so it's quite cool.

Jenna-Caer (56:27.441)
Fantastic. Well, thank you again for taking the time and we will definitely be following along with, well, your race came up here in Qatar and then next season as well. Thank you so much for joining us.

Georgia (56:37.733)
Thank you very much. Thank you. Thank you for having me.

Josh (56:38.968)
Thanks, Roger.