Georgia Taylor-Brown admitted she used triathlon to escape her home life. Photo: Getty Images/Loic Venance
Winning an Olympic medal in triathlon is hard enough at the best of times; to do this while carrying someone else is quite a feat. For Georgia Taylor-Brown, her return mission to Paris this summer will be far from easy, but, at least domestically, it will be easier compared to Tokyo.
Separating the personal from the professional is part of the top athlete's toolkit, but four years ago she had to separate herself from a chaotic and complex background. With her long-term partner, former Team Sky cyclist Josh Edmondson, who suffers from severe depression, she effectively provided them with emotional support. It's only now, as she looks forward to this year's Games in a new relationship, that she feels able to talk about it.
“Josh was a cyclist and cycling is just a different world. He has a lot of addiction problems. Drug use, alcoholism… there’s a lot of it,” she says. Edmondson admitted to taking legal vitamin supplements and taking tramadol.
“It all started almost as soon as we got together. It would be good for a while, then it would get bad again. It was very up and down. Like any addiction, it's not a straight line. It doesn't mean you're sober and done. When I wasn't home, I always talked on the phone to make sure he was okay.
“It’s been hard dealing with everything that’s going on in my personal life and trying to keep it out of my professional life. life. But you just get used to the situation you're in, don't you? I didn't know any better. I've been in this relationship since I was 20-21 and it was all I knew. It was my first real relationship.
“I just got over it myself. I really don't know why. I was probably scared to talk about it because I really didn't understand what was going on. I thought we could handle it because that's what couples do. But it got to the point where I couldn't do it on my own anymore and I had to get help. Both for him and for me.”
The outside world saw only the success story of a brilliant Olympic gold medal in the mixed relay and an individual silver medal, but back home in Leeds the situation was getting worse.
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“The end of 2021, after the Olympics, was really tough. I celebrated this amazing success, but Josh had to go through a very difficult time. I wanted him to be proud of me and celebrate with me, but he couldn't do it,” she says.
“Then 2022 turned really bad. Most race mornings I would just cry in my room. I would leave the room, smile and go do my job — and I was still racing well — but I had to work hard to hide it all.»
It was an emotional whirlwind. . When it came to a crunch meeting with Flora Duffy at the final race of the season in Abu Dhabi to decide who would be this year's world champion, she ran empty-handed.
“I wanted to be world champion so bad , but I just didn’t want to be there. My head just wasn't in it. I have nothing left,” she says. She lost second place.
“I didn’t want to do triathlon.”
Unable to take it anymore, Taylor-Brown finally ended the relationship 15 months ago. After so much, this should have been liberating. Instead, she felt sluggish and numb, even as the new season arrived.
“That part of my life was gone, and I thought I had recovered from it, but I didn’t. I had no motivation. I didn't want to do triathlon. I didn't feel like doing much at all,” she says.
“Maybe it was just the accumulation of emotions over the years and everything went wrong. I was on the edge, but I kept going and going, and my body just said, “No.”
This was especially true last July when she tore her calf, a four-month injury that ended her season. “I just think the calf injury was a result of my body saying, 'We're shutting you down and you're doing a hard reset,'” she says. “It made me realize how much emotional and psychological things take away from you. You think it's just in your head, but physically it's really hard.
“Your body is very smart. If you're not going to stop, it will tell you to stop.»
«I can sleep easier at night.»
Time is a great healer, and Taylor-Brown is healthy again. In every way. She tells her story from the kitchen in Girona where she trained. The house belongs to her new partner, French triathlete Vincent Louis. She's clearly happy. And this time it's not the front.
“Being in a real relationship, filled with love and care, where I am very well taken care of and I feel safe, is so nice. I sleep a lot easier at night,” she said.
“It’s nice to be with someone who understands what I do, understands my dreams, who respects them and is proud of me. This is an Olympic year, so we will be separated often. As hard as it may be, we both have dreams and we push each other forward.”
Georgia Taylor- Brown (right) is looking forward to Paris. Photo: Getty Images/Michael Steele
Paris 2024 is an important common goal. Taylor-Brown's injury last season means she has yet to qualify for the Games in May, but all else being equal she will be there and in contention for the podium.
“It would be a dream come true. I was very lucky that I managed to win two medals in Tokyo. I am now looking at the photos from the finish line, and I get goosebumps thinking about the instant emotions that I received in the individual and team competitions. I want to contain this feeling and be able to experience it constantly. It's part of my quest to find that feeling again.
“From a very young age, for me it was always about the Olympic Games. This is the pinnacle of any sport and that's what I strive for. It would be incredible if my family and friends were there this time.”
This time her only concern will be the race itself, her old life gone.
“I haven't heard anything from Josh. I don't know what he's doing, but I hope he's on a growth path and that he's healthier and happier,” she says.
“I was with him for eight years. He was a person who I really loved and cared about and who I really thought I could help move forward in his life and become a better person. I thought I could heal him.
“It doesn't mean you can just turn it all off and forget you ever cared about them. I still think about him, I care about him and I really hope he is doing well. That's all I ever wanted for him.»
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