A 26-year-old from Barrow won the annual Ladies Lake District Lakesman triathlon - just three years after entering her first event. 

Set against the backdrop of Cumbria's spectacular countryside, the course starts with a 2.4 mile swim in Derwentwater, followed by a 112-mile cycle around West Cumbria before finishing with a gruelling 26.2 mile marathon. 

Hundreds of participants took part but it was Rebecca Smith who eventually came out on top, finishing in 11hrs 05 minutes.

Her sectors were:

Swim - 1hr 22 minutes

Bike - 5 hrs 52 minutes

Marathon - 3 hrs 49 minutes

 

Smith may have won but she said she underperformed in the swimming section and was then forced to change her whole strategy when her brakepad started rubbing against the wheel of her bike.

She also lost her rear bottle cages, which made staying hydrated extremely difficult, but she didn't let that deter her.

"I would have liked to have gone faster in the swimming discipline, but I used that as encouragement to push myself further on the bike and in the run to make up for lost time," she said. 

"It was around halfway through the marathon that I realised I had gone into first place. I never imagined I would be in a position to win.

"When I passed the finish line my immediate emotion was relief. I was so overwhelmed. I shouldn't have been though, especially with the level of commitment I had put into everything. I can only go on and get better from here."

 

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Smith first started running and cycling during the COVID-19 lockdown and she has not looked back since. 

She now has a coach who she says has improved her in all three disciplines, as well as having someone there to hold her to account.

She added: "My last event was the Barcelona Ironman in October 2022 and since then, I haven't stopped training. It's an addiction. I couldn't see myself doing anything differently. As soon as I finish an event, I'm looking forward again to the next one. They call it the 'Race Blues'". 

Her incredibly proud dad Kevin, who follows his daughter to every event, was left feeling 'unbelievably proud' of her achievement.

He said: "We've got a video of her crossing the finish line and we were all absolutely bouncing. She's trained all year for this. It's a hobby, but it's also her life. All she does is train. 

"She's now with a coach and he's brought her on in leaps and bounds. She's managed to knock 55 minutes off her time from last year."

 

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Next Smith turns her attention to training for the Portuguese Ironman in Cascais in October.