It takes a lot to push Beth Potter over the pain threshold.
For someone who has risen to the very top of the world in one of the most physically demanding sports on the planet, the triathlete knows how to handle discomfort.
But Potter’s most recent injury left her in such excruciating pain that she could, at its worst, barely walk and it left her wondering if she’d ever return to a point at which she could train and compete in full health once again.
Potter’s something of an unusual athlete in that she’s always been welcomingly open about what’s going on in her head - and what was going on during the months she could not run a step was not, she admits, easy to cope with.
“Late last year, I tore my plantar in my foot and had a bone spur and a grade three stress response so it was quite a bad injury and it was very, very painful,” the 34-year-old from Glasgow says.
“I couldn’t run for months and then when I did begin running again in training, I literally couldn't walk on it the following day and actually it was so painful I couldn't even ride my bike afterwards.
“And when I was injured, I didn't sleep for weeks because I was so stressed about it. So it was tough.”
It’s unsurprising that Leeds-based Potter was quite so anxious about her inability to train at the level to which she’s become accustomed.
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Having become world triathlon champion in 2023 and then won both individual and team bronze medals at the Olympic Games in 2024, Potter, who switched to triathlon from athletics in 2017, knows exactly how demanding it is to be one of the world’s best triathletes. And so having been unable to do anything like the running volume she’s used to, it’s unsurprising that she looked forwards to the 2026 season entirely unsure as to how she would perform.
With the season beginning last month with the World Triathlon Championship Series event in Samarkand, Uzbekistan, Potter could have been full of doubts. But upon her return to training, and particularly running training, she took everyone, especially herself, by surprise with just how good shape she seemed to be in.
“It's only been the last five weeks or so that I've managed to get up to about 30 minutes of effort so what really surprised me was that when I came back to running properly, my fitness came back really fast and by my first session, I was already running low five minute miles,” she says.
“I was really shocked by that, and my coach was shocked too. Strangely, I felt like I'd never been away.
“I can't wear carbon shoes in training anymore so even just wearing chunky trainers, I was running quicker than ever so I took a lot of confidence from that. But even with that, I just didn't know what to expect from the start of this season.”
When Potter stood on the start line for the first race of the season, she remained full of uncertainty but, as she’s become accustomed to doing, she surprised everyone with her result. A dominant performance saw Potter take victory by nine seconds over Frenchwoman Leonie Periault to ensure that the Scot had as perfect a start to her season as she could have hoped and means she goes into the second World Triathlon Series event this weekend in Yokohama in a far more relaxed state of mind.
“I really didn't expect to win last month but my coach thought I could win and when I was running with Leonie (Periault) and then overtaking her I was like maybe my coach is right,” she says.
“When I crossed the line, though, I actually feel that happy, it just felt more like a real weight off my shoulders. And I've been really exhausted since that race, I think because there had been such a build-up of adrenaline and cortisol and everything was all pent up inside me.
“But going into Japan, that weight's gone and I'm looking forward to this race. I really like racing in Yokohama - it's one of my favourite races on the circuit so hopefully I can get a good result.”
As Potter looks ahead to what will be another gruelling season, she has one goal, and one goal only.
Having found, she openly admits, Olympic year in 2024 particularly stressful, she wants to focus far more on enjoyment than results this season. An improvement upon her third place in the overall series last season would, she admits, be nice, but that target comes secondary to purely having fun.
“This season, I just want to enjoy racing again - that’s how I get the best out of myself,” says Potter.
“I don't want to put any definite goals on my season but if things continue the way it's going then I feel like I'll be heading in the right direction. I feel like everything I do now is a bit of a bonus because I've had some really really good results over the past few years and I feel like I'm still improving. So as long as I keep enjoying it and I'm able to still push in training then I definitely think I'll be competitive.
“I hope that others are scared of me because I feel like I always put up a good fight and I feel like I can win from most scenarios, which is what you need to be at this level.
“I've always loved training but in Olympic year, I didn't love going to the races so I just want to enjoy this season.”
