Hometown hero Lucy Charles-Barclay wins T100 London

Lucy Charles-Barclay wins T100 London. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon

The women got the day started at T100 London on Saturday, and after a thrilling 62 miles of racing, it was hometown favorite Lucy Charles-Barclay who took the win. It was an incredibly competitive race that came down to the final mile of running. In the end, Charles-Barclay found another gear in the closing stages of the run, helping her to catch and pass compatriot Kate Waugh and delivering her the first T100 win of her career.

Charles-Barclay Leads Out of the Water

It was no surprise to see Charles-Barclay out in front in the swim. She took the lead right away and didn’t give it up for the rest of the 1.2 miles. The swim consisted of two laps, with athletes getting out of the water for an Aussie exit after the first lap, running for 50 yards or so and then diving back into the water from the starting pontoon. Charles-Barclay maintained her lead as she ran between laps one and two, but she had plenty of company, with fellow Brits Jessica Learmonth and Waugh just steps behind her, as well as Taylor Knibb.

In the second lap, the three British women separated themselves from Knibb, putting eight seconds between themselves and the American. Charles-Barclay led the women into T1, but it was Learmonth who took the lead out onto the bike after a speedy transition. Waugh was next, followed by Charles-Barclay.

The T100 London swim course features an Aussie exit between its two laps Photo: Kevin Mackinnon

Knibb lost more time in T1 as she opted to put socks on, and she set out on the bike course with a 21-second deficit to make up. The gap between Knibb and the next round of chasers was even larger, with another Brit, Holly Lawrence, leaving on the bike 43 seconds behind Learmonth. The remaining 15 women were all more than a minute behind the lead (at least) as they left T1.

A Tight Ride

The ride was really a four-woman affair, at least when it came to who was in the fight for the win. Learmonth held onto the lead for almost half of the 50-mile ride, but as she approached the end of the fourth lap (of eight total), Waugh passed her. Waugh’s lead didn’t last all that long, though, as Charles-Barclay decided to move into first just over a mile later.

Energized by the many British fans lining the bike course, that trio of women held onto the top three spots for a while, but Knibb always had them in her sights. Slowly, she picked them off, and with 16 miles to go, the five-time T100 champ moved into the lead.

Lucy Charles-Barclay held the lead on the bike for much of the ride in London. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon

It was at this point that it looked like Knibb might ride away with the lead. The win was not a sure thing by any means, but it wouldn’t have been surprising if she had put a gap between herself and the three Brits before T2. That didn’t happen, though, and with a little more than 10 miles to go, Charles-Barclay took the lead back and put seven seconds between herself and Knibb. Learmonth and Waugh were just a couple of seconds back at this point, too, keeping the race close as they approached the eighth and final lap of the ride.

Further back, it was another Brit, Lucy Byram, sitting all alone in fifth. She was hovering around two minutes back of the leaders, but she had more than a minute and a half between herself and the next group of four athletes. This group included Julie Derron, who won T100 San Francisco and finished second at T100 Vancouver earlier this year. Derron chased down Knibb on the run to take the win in San Francisco, but with the gap eventually sitting at four minutes at the end of the ride, the win was out of reach for the Olympic silver medallist.

Taylor Knibb kept things interesting on the ride in London, erasing a big gap after the swim. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon

Just like she did in T1, Charles-Barclay led the women into T2, dismounting her bike 16 seconds clear of Knibb. Learmonth was right behind the American, and Waugh was just 11 seconds behind her in fourth. As the women set out on the run, it was Charles-Barclay five seconds ahead of Learmonth, then Knibb and Waugh 14 and 16 seconds back of the lead.

Down to the Run

Waugh wasted no time getting to work on the run course, quickly eating into Charles-Barclay’s lead. Soon enough, it was Waugh who climbed into first place, and she stayed there for much of the run. Further back down the road, Charles-Barclay had managed to put more time between herself and Knibb, so it looked like the Brits would go first and second on home soil.

That is what ended up happening, but not until Charles-Barclay leapfrogged Waugh to move into first in a couple of exciting final laps. Waugh had been running so well, and while she built a 15-second lead at one point, Charles-Barclay refused to go away. Slowly over the final three miles, the 2023 IRONMAN world champion clawed her way back into contention for the win, reeling her fellow Brit in.

Charles-Barclay on the run in London. Photo: Kevin Mackinnon

With just a couple of miles to go, Charles-Barclay caught Waugh. She didn’t give Waugh the chance to get on her tail, blowing by her and charging onward toward the finish. She ended up putting another 55 seconds between herself and Waugh before breaking the tape. The British fans in attendance roared in excitement as Charles-Barclay approached the line, where she broke down in tears. Her final time was 3:35:51, including the fastest swim (26:28) and run splits (1:06:02) of the day.

Waugh ran down the finishing chute less than a minute later, stopping the clock in 3:36:46 for a stellar showing in second. Knibb rounded out the podium, posting a final time of 3:39:07.

Big Result on Home Soil

After the race, Charles-Barclay spoke about just how unique T100 racing is in the middle- and long-distance triathlon world.

“T100 is so much more similar to short-course racing,” she said. “This is very, very different. It’s so much more tactical, and trying to go with the race whenever it’s moving is so important.” She had that on her mind the two times she was caught on the race course (first on the bike by Knibb and then on the run by Waugh), but she said she wasn’t too stressed sitting in second during the run.

“When Kate took off, I was like, ‘Well, you know what, if it’s second today you’re still delivering an amazing performance,'” she said. “To hang in tough and grit it out and get the win at the end of the day was just amazing.” Charles-Barclay added that to win in front of her friends and family made the race all the more special.

“There was a lot of emotion on that finish line,” she said. “It’s probably one of the most emotional finishes I’ve had, just knowing they’re all here watching.” She said her family and friends have “put in so much support” for her through injuries and hard times, but “they’ve always believed” she could get back to winning big races.

“To have them all here and to be able to go and say thank you to them, it’s just amazing,” she said.

Women’s Top 5

For full results from T100 London, click here.

Tags: