It has been a year of firsts for Beth Potter yet the athlete that speaks now is as similar as they are different to the one that started the season.
Potter opened her account for the year with a first WTCS win in March. A commanding performance at WTCS Abu Dhabi marked her out as one to watch and further firsts followed. In August she made her first Olympic Test Event appearance; in 2019 she was not ranked highly enough to get onto the Tokyo Test Event start list. Most significantly, she signed off her campaign with her biggest first yet.
“It’s a bit funny,” said Potter when asked how it feels to be the world champion. “I’ve not really had time to let it all sink in.”
After her opening victory in Abu Dhabi, she admitted that her mind had not turned to the world title. In many respects, that was a fair position. It would have been easy to get ahead of herself after a solitary win and Potter is too experienced an athlete for that. Moreover, with its early slot in the year, Abu Dhabi is often not the best marker for success over the rest of the year.
Prior to this year, only two women had won in Abu Dhabi and gone on to win the world title (Gwen Jorgensen in 2015 and Katie Zaferes in 2019). Only one man had ever won WTCS Abu Dhabi as well as the Series in the same year.
To a degree, then, it made sense that Potter had not thought of the world title. Such was the manner of her victory, though, the notion was always there.
“I thought it would be a possibility after I won Montreal,” said Potter. “But I had all eyes on Paris really, so it was probably after Paris that I thought it could happen. I was like, ‘I’m kind of all in now’.”
In addition to the world title, Potter secured an Olympic berth, cracking Britain’s fearsome qualification criteria and earning the opportunity to race in the Games in triathlon for the first time.
“My main aim was to qualify for the Olympics. To do all of it was quite special this year.”
In 2016, she raced at the Olympics on the track in the 10,000m. Eight years later, she will return in a new sport.
“I don’t think that’s really hit home yet. It’s been a really hard journey and I’ve worked really hard. I’m glad its all paying off now and its nice to see myself reaping all the rewards.”
After Abu Dhabi, Potter spoke of encountering troubles with illness and motivation last winter. Combating that throughout the season has come from a variety of sources.
“I’ve been working with a psychologist, as I’ve been pretty open about, so I think that’s definitely helped. And I have a really good squad here in Leeds our training partners and coaches, of people that back me and believe in me. That’s been really good for me as well. On days when I don’t feel as motivated it really helps.”
“I did feel the pressure towards the end of the season. I went into Paris ranked number 1 and then I went into Pontevedra with it all on the line. I feel like I put pressure on myself.”
Even with the pressure, Potter remained equanimous regarding her position.
“It’s a great position to be in. I’ve been worrying about not being in it for a long time and now I’m here I’m going to enjoy it. It’s a privilege.”
Another point that arose in March was how Potter had felt there had been a fair amount of negativity, in both private and public, around her prospects. Her chances were often talked down as some believed she would not run as fast as before or that her swim would not be up to scratch.
Over the course of 2023, Potter has provided a powerful rebuttal to any such naysayers. Yet, the background noise proved a challenge all the same.
“I feel like I found it particularly hard because I didn’t come through the grassroots in triathlon. I was a bit of an imposter, I guess, because I come from a different background and a different path. Maybe it’s because people saw me as a threat.”
Now, though, things are different.
“I have shown I am one of the best in the world, or the best in the world, this year.”
Being at the top of her game has introduced another target. With qualification for the Olympics already sewn up, she has her sights on a place on the British Mixed Team Relay in Paris.
This year, she has stepped up in a couple of relays, such as in Hamburg, Sunderland and Paris. Although, on multiple occasions, the triathlon world has not entirely seen Britain at full strength through a combination of experimentation with the line-up and injuries to previous staples like Georgia Taylor-Brown.
Potter, though, has been a point of stability on the relay. At the World Mixed Team Relay Championships in Hamburg, she produced the leading anchor leg even with Britain being way down the field.
The problem is that there is simply so much depth among the British women. It is entirely conceivable that a WTCS winner could be left at home next summer. In spite of the fierce competition, Potter remains confident.
“I think I’ve done everything I can to prove that I’m one of the best to be in the relay. If they (the British selectors) can’t see that I just need to keep proving that I am good enough to be in that team because I believe that I am.”
For the time being, rest is the order of the day. At the end of the 2022 season, Potter admitted to having taken a token break before ploughing back into full training. Her over-zealous return may have contributed to the difficulties of last winter and this time she plans to approach things differently.
“I’m going to have a proper break and completely reset and switch off and not do any training. Well, I’ll do a bit of training to keep ticking over. But it’ll be a proper break to make sure I’m crawling up the walls to get back to training.”
Once she is back from her rest, Potter will start the final road to the Paris Olympics. She will enter the new season as the world champion, ranked world number 1 and an early favourite for the Olympic gold medal. Even with all the firsts she has achieved this year, the biggest first of all may be on the horizon in Paris next summer.
After what we have collectively witnessed from her in 2023, few will bet against her when the Games arrive.
