When I meet athlete Lauren Steadman in Paris for the official Team GB kit reveal, she's humble, down to earth, and candid about her journey so far - despite being a three-time Paralympic champion, the proud owner of an MBE for her services to triathlon, and appearing on both Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, where she reached the final.
At just 31 years old, she's had a pretty impressive career, also managing to squeeze in a psychology degree and business and management master's. And she's not stopping there, admitting exclusively during our interview that she plans to try and qualify for the Winter Games after her stint in Paris. "I'm looking to see if I can qualify for my first Winter Games - that's the next plan," she smiles.
But for now, it's all eyes on Paris. With just days to go until she attempts to defend her title, we've asked her to share her top life lessons and career highlights. Keen to read more from our Women in Sport special? Read our cover interview with Team GB sprinters Daryll Neita and Laviai Nielsen here, or if you're short on time, scroll 16 fun facts about the athletes. Supporting the cover interviews, read our deep dives into Paris being the first ever gender equal Olympics, plus an investigation into why mothers are underestimated in sport and a round up of most iconic Olympic fashion moments throughout history.
Lauren Steadman: "I might have an arm missing, but I'm just as strong as you are"
1. Don't put yourself in one box
Steadman is a bit of a jack-of-all-trades, but her many talents have taught her never to put yourself in one box and always to grab opportunity by the horns. "I started as a swimmer and competed as a swimmer at the Beijing and London Olympic Games. I was very good and always gave 110% in training, but just felt I couldn't quite transfer into my race." (She says this despite ranking fifth in the world in the London 2012 Paralympics over the 400-metre distance).
That's when she made the decision to transition to triathlon, a move which would ultimately make her a Paralympic champion. "My uncle had completed an IronMan race and suggested giving triathlon a go. He said, "You've always cross-trained, you love running and you can ride a bike. Why don't you try triathlon?"."
"So I did - and I absolutely loved it. British Triathlon swooped in and said they'd love me to get on board and while it was scary because I'd done one thing for so many years, now I love that aspect of triathlon. If you don't feel like running one day, you can park it, and the same with swimming and cycling."
2. Know that some dreams come later in life
While you might assume that the athlete always knew she'd be a champion, this isn't quite true. "I started exercising when I was at primary school [but didn't dream of making a career of it until later on]. One time, a teacher asked for somebody to do the local swimming competition and no one put their hand up. I felt sorry for the school teacher, So I was like, Well, I can swim!"
She admits candidly that she didn't even know about the Paralympics at that point. "The movement was so small back then. I remember going to my first disability competition which was really daunting because as I lived in the middle of nowhere, I hadn't really been exposed to disability."
Bottom line: Dreams can come later in life, and you can certainly achieve them. "I didn't have the dream as a young child, but it became one a little bit later on, just as I starting college."
3. Finding community focused sports will keep you motivated
We regularly rave about the importance of finding your fitness community here at MC UK - it makes sport fun, accessible and holds you accountable, too. Steadman maintains that these are all big factors in her love of triathlon. "Triathlon allows you to be with more people, and to be part of three different worlds feels really special."
"Cycling is probably my favourite one because you can ride with anybody of any age and any ability. When it's nice weather in the UK, I love having a mid-ride cake and chatting to people from different walks of life."
4. Support networks are invaluable
Leading on from the last life lesson nicely, Steadman reflects that support networks are absolutely key to growth, both in and out of sport. "My parents brought me and my sister up to never see barriers. There was no prejudice and opportunities were presented to both of us constantly."
"We were told to choose what we wanted to do in life and that we'd always have their support."
5. You can have more than one life highlight
This one's important. "Obviously getting the gold medal was like a lifetime goal, and crossing that line meant literally everything to me, despite accidentally swimming the wrong way - I missed one of the swim buoys and only had a 22-second lead going into the last 800 metres."
"My grandparents had passed on at that point, and they were a big motivator for me. But I could feel my grandmother there in that moment. I remember asking myself, how much do you want it?"
"I found another 20 seconds and I don't know where it came from - it was like a miracle."
"My other highlight was when I became a world champion, purely because my whole family was there. It meant everything and was the pinnacle of my career."
6. Sleep is the by far the best recovery hack
When I ask the Paralympic champion how she recovers from arduous training weeks and seriously intense races, she has three words: "Lots of sleep."
Hear, hear.
