Lauren Steadman MBE is a double Paralympic medalist – winning triathlon silver in Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and gold at Tokyo 2020 – and a former 4×100 freestyle world champion in the pool. 

Born in Peterborough in December 1992, Lauren was born without her lower right arm, but she never let that hold her back, becoming one of the most successful British athletes on the world stage. 

Steadman is an accomplished swimmer – taking up the sport at the age of four – winning World and European medals in freestyle. Her prowess in the water would make her a two-time Paralympian in the pool as she competed at Beijing 2008 and London 2012 

After that success, her uncle suggested she give paratriathlon a try – and she hasn’t looked back. Steadman earned medals at both the 2013 and 2014 European Championships as her mutli-discipline career began to flourish. 

With her swimming background, Steadman is always strong in the opening swim of any event, putting her in contention for victory every time she appears on the start line. 

In total Lauren is a three-time world champion and six-time European champion, and is currently coached by former Olympian Robin Brew. 

Away from the sport, Steadman’s fame has afforded her the opportunity to compete in reality TV shows Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins, helping bring greatly appreciated attention to paratriathlon. 

She has also earned a Masters degree in business, as well as an undergraduate degree in psychology. 

Lauren Steadman record and results

Steadman made her debut on the ITU World Championship Series (WTCS) circuit in 2011 with a second-place finish in the TRI-4 category. Her breakthrough came two years later as she won both the British Paratriathlon National Championships and European Championships. 

Further victories followed at ITU London and Madrid, the ETU European Championship and the ITU Grand Final in Edmonton in 2014 before a sextet of further victories in 2015: British National Championships, ITU series events on London, Besancon, Rio de Janeiro and the Grand Final in Chicago, as well as a third European title. 

After going unbeaten in 2015, Steadman geared up for the Rio Paralympics with victories at ITU Buffalo City and Strathclyde, while winning the British National Championship for a third time, and the ETU European Championship for a fourth time. 

In Rio in the PT4 category, Steadman exited the swim 30 seconds behind USA’s Grace Norman – but made up 27 of those seconds in T1. Steadman ruled the bike to take a 23 second lead into the run, but Norman produced a sensational scamper to overtake the Brit and win the race by over a minute – Steadman securing a silver medal. 

Re-classification after Rio led to Steadman competing in the PTS5 category for the 2020 Paralympic cycle. After winning the European Championships in 2017, Steadman really took command of the discipline in 2018 with five wins out of five; ITU Yokohama, Eton Dorney, Iseo – Franciacorta, the European Championships and World Triathlon Grand Final on the Gold Coast. 

After a pair of defeats to fellow Brit Claire Cashmore in 2019, Steadman got revenge at the ITU World Cup event in Tokyo, but was bested again by her compatriot in the ITU Grand Final in Lausanne. Lauren had the last laugh, however, as she took home the European Championship for a sixth time in Valencia. 

A single win in at ITU Alhandra in 2020 – a year with very little racing due to the pandemic – Steadman ruled the roost over the PTS5 category in the lead up to the Paralympics in Tokyo – winning at the World Triathlon Para Series in Leeds and Para Cup in Coruna. 

That all led to a re-match with Norman in Tokyo, with added spice of Cashmore waiting in the wings. Norman, like in Rio, opened a lead to the pack of 43 seconds, but Steadman countered by T2 to lead by 18 seconds heading into the run. 

This time, Steadman outran Norman by 23 seconds to take her first Olympic gold medal. 

After her Paralympic win, Steadman didn’t race in 2022, but returned with a bang in 2023, never finishing off the podium. Back-to-back second place finishes in Besancon and Montreal preceded two bronze medals in Swansea and the World Championship in Pontevedra, before she picked up her first win of the year in October at the World Triathlon Para Cup Malaga.

In 2023, Steadman also announced that she would be attempting to qualify for the Winter Paralympics, and would be training to race in the cross country skiing event. The next Winter Paralympics will be held in Italy in 2026.

Lauren Steadman gear

Lauren is supported by a number of brands including Bridgetown Cycles, the University of Portsmouth, Jysk and Science in Sport. She is also a sports ambassador for the Triathlon Trust and United Learning. 

Lauren’s bike of choice is the Trek Speed Concept and her running partner is Adidas.