Holly Lawrence over-the-moon to clinch fifth place
Holly Lawrence was over-the-moon to clinch a fifth place finish on her return to T100 Triathlon following the birth of her daughter.
The 35-year-old from Hammersmith in London took part in the T100 Miami last year before becoming a parent for the first time in October.
Just seven months later and Lawrence crossed the finish line in San Francisco in fifth place, and with daughter Poppy and husband Sean there to congratulate her, it was a moment to remember for the former world champion.
"I thought best case scenario was top 10 so to come fifth feels like a win," she said.
"It's really sweet to see her here, I always worry that when I've been away for a couple of hours she'll look away. But she always looks at me and smiles and it's amazing."
Lawrence missed out on a podium in San Francisco, with Switzerland's Julie Derron taking her maiden T100 win, and the USA's Taylor Knibb and Britian's Kate Waugh completing the top three.
The San Francisco course takes place on the iconic 'Escape to Alcatraz' triathlon route, with cold waters, a hilly bike leg and windy run.
It's a difficult course for any triathlete to undertake, never mind for one of your first races back.
But even with the technical aspects still needing work, Lawrence admitted surprise in an unexpectedly strong 18km run in which she moved up the rankings to take fifth place.
"It was really fun, the bike I was kind of beating myself up a bit and taking the technical parts of it too gingerly but I just had an open mind on the run," she added.
"I didn't really expect much out of it because I've only done about three weeks of workouts on the run.
"I've had steady progression, but I feel strong and not fast. It just felt super steady and smooth.
"And I know it sounds super cliché but I've usually tune out all the shouts from people but everyone was saying 'welcome back' and it was really nice."
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