Watch Lauren’s wonderful and inspiring interview with Alastair, from Octobers Virtual Family Day 2020.
Triple World Champion (2014, 2015, 2018) seven-time European Champion (2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019) and Paralympic silver medallist Lauren Steadman has been no stranger to the podium since her triathlon debut in 2011.
Lauren, originally from Peterborough but is now a member of the Portsmouth based UK Sport Lottery Funded British Paratriathlon Squad and coached by Robin Brew. Lauren gained a First-Class degree in Psychology at Portsmouth University in 2014. In 2017 she completed an MSc Business and Management, in which she achieved a distinction.
Lauren came to triathlon having already been to two Paralympic Games as a swimmer in 2008 and 2012. She went to her first Paralympics in Beijing aged just 15 and competed at the London 2012 Paralympic Games. Her background in swimming provides a significant strength in triathlon. She was born without a right forearm and competes in the PTS5 classification, which will be included in the Tokyo Paralympics 2021
Lauren continues to be the reigning European champion after seven consecutive victories including her most recent gold medal in Valencia. She extended her gold medal tally with a 1st place finish at the Tokyo Paratriathlon World Cup. Lauren also secured three silver medals in 2019 from the GBR National Championships, the Groupe Copley World Paratriathlon Series in Montreal and the ITU World Triathlon Grand Final at Lausanne where she crossed the line after GB teammate, and Reach Ambassador Claire Cashmore.
Lauren was part of the Strictly Come Dancing contestants in 2018, partnered with AJ Pritchard, they made it to the semi-final, an amazing achievement!
In March of this year having completed the savage endurance training course led by former soldier Ant Middleton, Lauren was crowned joint winner of Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins. Lauren is made of strong stuff, but admits it was a gruelling process.