A late starter to triathlon, Fenella Langridge’s subsequent move to half-Iron and beyond is what kick-started a medal-heavy career.
Who is Fenella Langridge?
You won’t find a string of junior titles on the sporting CV of Fenella Langridge. The Brit was a latecomer to triathlon, only starting out in the sport in her final year of university, having previously competed in biathlon and cross-country running.
Indeed, she didn’t own her own bike until her dad bought her one at the age of 18. Langridge has certainly made up for lost time, though, even if she didn’t make too much of an impression on the scene at first.
A bronze medal in the national championships, and a fifth place in a European Cup race in the Netherlands, were the most she had to show for several years racing at Olympic distance. Something needed to change. For the 2018 season, at the age of 25, Langridge chose to go long.
Her impact was instant. In her first Ironman 70.3 outing, she took bronze in Pays d’Aix; a week later, in Barcelona, silver was her reward. In just two races, Langridge had turned her career around, catapulting it into a different hemisphere.
Her first 70.3 victory followed the next season in Edinburgh, either side of which came bronzes in Staffordshire and Weymouth.
In 2019, despite being battered and bruised from a bike crash the week earlier, Langridge cruised to the most comfortable of victories at Ironman 70.3 in Barcelona.
Her post-pandemic career has taken her elsewhere too – namely into full-Iron territory. Again, Langridge’s impact was almost immediate, taking silver in her first Ironman adventure at Couer d’Alene.
She’s subsequently taken both bronze and silver at Challenge Roth, along with posting a very creditable eighth at the 2021 Ironman World Champs in St George, Utah, and a fantastic sixth at the 2022 Ironman Worlds in Kona, Hawaii, on her first trip to the Big Island.
At the end of 2023, she mounted the Ironman top step for the first in Bussleton, Western Australia, with a course-record time.
How old is Fenella Langridge?
Fenella Langridge was born on March 5, 1992, making her 31 years of age.
Fenella Langridge’s career highlights
August 2015: Bronze medal at the national champs
Having come fifth in the national sprint championships the previous month in Liverpool, Langridge takes bronze in the Olympic-distance event behind the experienced pair of Helen Jenkins and Emma Pallant-Brown.
June 2017: A top-five finish in the Netherlands
Langridge records her only other top-five placing in Olympic-distance racing with a fifth place in the ETU European Cup race in the Dutch city of Weert. At the end of this season, she makes the decision to move on up distance-wise
May 2018: A medal-winning 70.3 debut
In her first-ever half-Iron race, Langridge achieves arguably the best finish of her career to date when she comes third at Ironman Pays d’Aix, beating her experienced compatriot Lucy Gossage into the bargain. A week later, Langridge shows this wasn’t beginner’s luck, earning a silver at Ironman 70.3 Barcelona.
July 2018: Langridge upgrades to gold
After scoring bronze at Ironman 70.3 Staffordshire, Langridge takes her maiden half-Iron victory with an assured performance at Ironman 70.3 Edinburgh. Another bronze, this time in Weymouth in September, caps an excellent rookie season at middle distance.
May 2019: Golden times in Barcelona
Having had to pull out of Ironman 70.3 Pays d’Aix after a bike crash that left her requiring stitches, a week later Langridge storms to 70.3 victory in Barcelona, finishing ahead of the field by six and a half minutes.
June 2019: Silvers in Belgium and Denmark
After a second place at Challenge Geraardsbergen, Langridge travels north to Denmark where she takes another silver, finishing behind her compatriot Holly Lawrence at Ironman 70.3 Elsinore but recording the day’s best run split.
September 2020: Post-pandemic bronze successes
After the pandemic disrupts the race calendar, Langridge returns to competition in France, taking third place at Ironman 70.3 Les Sables d’Olonne. Another bronze comes her way at the Outlaw Half in Nottinghamshire.
December 2020: Among middle-distance royalty in Florida
At the PTO Championships at Challenge Daytona in Florida, Langridge scores an impressive seventh-place finish in an absolutely A-class field; the mighty Nicola Spirig is among her scalps. Langridge indulges in a dance at the finish line, as well as pocketing a cool $23,000.
June 2021: Another glorious debut, this time at full-Iron distance
In her first Ironman, Langridge again shows what a natural she is over distance, taking silver at Coeur d’Alene and slipping under the nine-hour mark by just 11 seconds.
September 2021: A medal in her Roth debut
Making her bow at the iconic Challenge Roth race, Langridge finds herself in the podium ahead of many more experienced athletes. Only Germany’s Anne Haug and fellow Brit Laura Siddall go quicker.
July 2022: An upgraded appearance in Bavaria
After winning the half-distance Challenge Salou in April and posting a creditable eighth at the delayed 2021 Ironman Worlds in St George in Utah, Langridge returns to Bavaria for her second assault on Challenge Roth, this time emerging with silver. Haug takes gold again.
October 2022: Sixth in her Kona debut
Puts in a phenomenal debut performance on the Big Island, even leading on the bike for a while, before falling back slightly on the run to claim sixth at the line.
March 2023: Finishes second in South Africa
Starts her 2023 season with a podium at the Ironman African Championship behind Laura Phillip.
August 2023: Wins the first-ever Challenge London
A commanding start-to-finish leads secure her the inaugural Challenge London title in a time of 4:02:11.
December 2023: Wins her first Ironman
A week after finishing second at Challenge Canberra, Fenella not only wins her first full distance at Ironman Western Australia but she also sets a new course record of 8:29:43 – three minutes clear of Sweden’s Lisa Norden in second and nine minutes faster than the previous course best time.
Fenella Langridge in quotes
On her love for running: “My early running days began when competing with my swimming club in junior biathlons and then cross-country. Running is my escapism, giving me total freedom. The road is never long enough.”
On her eighth-place finish at the delayed 2021 Ironman world champs in St George: “I leave disappointed in myself and angry. I only have myself to blame. If you’re going to make mistakes, you can’t afford to make them at a race at this level. The other girls are just TOO good.”
On finding it difficult to relax: “It has taken a lot just to sit down and do nothing. If you need that mental release, then going for a walk is fine, but if you need to recover for the next session, get your arse on that sofa and sit down.”
On her debut Kona performance in 2022: "I now know next year I can go 10mins quicker simply by being run fit… that's exciting!!!"
On winning her first full Ironman at the end of 2023: “You never forget your first Ironman win, they’re harder to get these days with fields getting even more competitive so it’s nothing to take for granted and I’ll remember it for the rest of my life, it was amazing.”
What’s next for Fenella Langridge?
More podiums are calling in 2024 and Fenella will answer them.
Top image credit: Mark Runnacles/Getty Images for Ironman
