We are delighted that Laura has joined our BRIT Ambassador family and is championing the BRIT Challenge to support and improve young adult and student mental health and fitness throughout the UK.
Laura is a Professional Triathlete and who is a five time Iron-distance Champion and a four time World Champion (Amateur). Laura is also a Commentator, Podcast Host, Speaker, Mentor, Coach, Advocate for Women in Sport and an Ambassador for both the Women's Sport Trust and the Challenged Athletes Foundation.
“As a former student at the University of Nottingham, and through my own experiences in sport and working with athletes, as well as through supporting the Challenged Athletes Foundation and Women’s Sport Trust as an Ambassador, I know that there has been a worrying increase in the number of students and young adults with mental health challenges in their lives. I’m also aware that the COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact, putting even more stress and strain onto people. It’s a topic that so many find hard to talk about or voice which can make things worse.
Preventing and supporting the mental health and wellbeing needs of the population is not something the NHS can do alone and it is great to see that BRIT are forging partnerships and special relationships across the education, sport and charity sectors to have a positive UK-wide impact on young adult and student mental health and fitness. I am delighted that BRIT have forged a special relationship with NatSpec, the voice of specialist colleges in the UK, and I hope that all 108 specialist colleges will enter teams in the annual BRIT Challenge.
The BRIT Challenge is a feelgood February fundraiser for every university, college, specialist college and Students’ Union to enter teams and encourage student and staff participation. It’s also great that the BRIT Challenge has been designed to be an inclusive event and enables students and staff of all abilities to participate and add their miles to their team’s 2,022 mile target by hand-cycling, cycling, wheelchair pushing, swimming, walking, jogging, running, rowing or paddling (canoeing, kayaking or paddle-boarding).
I am thrilled to be part of the BRIT Ambassador family to promote the BRIT Challenge, destigmatise mental health and champion equality, diversity and inclusion. I hope to support and encourage students and staff at the University of Nottingham, Nottingham College and the Landmarks Specialist College, should they enter teams and take on the BRIT Challenge”.
Laura Siddall
Professional Triathlete, 5 x Iron-distance Champion & 4 x World Champion (Amateur)
Growing up in the UK, as the youngest of four girls, Laura represented England in Athletics, competing as a Junior in the 300m hurdles and also played for the England Netball Development Squad.
Laura served as an Officer in the British Army on a Gap Year Commission before attending University.
In 2004, Laura graduated from the University of Nottingham with a Masters degree in Mechanical Engineering. While at Nottingham, Laura was England Universities and British Universities Netball Captain.
Laura had a successful career working as a professional Chartered Mechanical Engineer working with a number of global multinationals, which included in 2008 moving to Sydney, Australia with her job at the time. In 2009 she started competing in Triathlon; a sport in which she began to thrive on.
Laura advanced through the Amateur ranks quickly, winning four World Amateur Titles at Sprint (2011), two Olympic distances in 2012 and 2013, and a Half Ironman distance in 2013.
Now as a Professional, Laura has won five Iron-distance titles and was the fastest British femaletriathlete in 2016 and 2017. In 2018, she became the first British athlete (male or female) to win Ironman New Zealand. Laura is a three time Champion of Ironman Australia (2017, 2018, 2019) and also in 2018, became the European Long Course Champion.
Laura is role model, especially for women in sport and business, and an avid supporter of the Challenged Athlete Foundation and the Women's Sports Trust. Laura volunteers and fundraises, supporting and working with local communities and projects around the world where she trains and races. Recently Laura worked to launch a partnership with Soles4Souls - to give your unwanted shoes and kit a second life around the world, and is an ambassador for Maikai as well as sitting on the British Triathlon Sustainability Commission and a member of the Professional Triathlete Organisation (PTO) Anti-Doping Board.
A corporate and public speaker, Laura integrates her experience in elite sport, together with her corporate and military background, to deliver Peak Performance workshops and seminars to multinationals and organisations from all industry sectors.
Laura is also a Sports Commentator for many races and events around the world. Laura has a growing identity among triathletes who almost universally refer to her as Sid or LMSid, with andeveloping online community, a regular contributor to many industry publications and podcasts, and through her own podcast segment Sid Talks, on Triathlete Magazine.
Laura has also just launch Sid Squad, supporting a young female triathlete from the UK, and is looking to grow and expand this to reach more young females in the sport, and around the world and to create a community to support them, and help guide them.
In July 2022, Laura will compete at the (postponed) 2020/21 Ironman World Championships in Utah. She will also compete in July at Challenge Roth in Germany and then hopes to qualify and compete at the 2022 Ironman World Championships in October.
For more information on Laura, please visit her website.