Agegroup Multisport Podcast (Triathlon,Duathlon,Aquabike,Aquathlon) · AMP

GB Agegrouper Joe Simpson

·1 hr 3 min·3 clips

Joe Simpson starts with a charity triathlon near home. He was about 11 then, doing a little swim, bike, and run, and looking back it feels like the point where the fire really caught. It was tiny, but it mattered. Years later, the Leeds triathlons in the city centre gave him another nudge, because seeing world championship racing on Yorkshire streets made the whole thing feel possible. He was inspired again. The conversation stays chronological, moving from that early spark into the later decision to have a proper go at age-group racing once he was ready for the 30 to 34 category. That became the lane. He talks through the qualifying process in plain terms, including the bit where one requirement was done but the other result still had him outside the top four. It took time. By May 2023 he was still waiting and had mostly moved on from the idea. Then an email arrived in December. That was the confirmation that he had actually qualified, and it landed almost like a surprise because he had nearly forgotten he had even tried. Portugal was next. The destination was Coimbra for the 2024 duathlon championships, which gave him a first international start and gave his mum and dad somewhere new to go as well. It felt like a proper trip. He says the whole thing was the coolest sporting thing he has done and, at the same time, the proudest. The start-line feeling is part of what makes the story work. He remembers the heartbeat noise, the way it settles the nerves, and the sense that he had once listened to that same thing in Leeds and wanted it for himself one day. Race day was kept simple. He went out to enjoy it, led the bike early, got dropped, ran a PB on the first run, finished 13th out of 13, and still came away thinking there was time to make gains next time. It is a warm, straightforward age-group story that stays close to the real mechanics of qualifying and racing.

As heard by us

A straightforward age-group triathlon story about chasing a first international race.

Joe Simpson's path starts with a local charity triathlon when he was about 11, then carries on to his first international race in Coimbra, Portugal.

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Why you'd press play

For the age-group racer who wants the route from local swim-bike-run to Coimbra, with no gloss.

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