Student who could not swim eight months ago off to Ironman World Championships

A student who only learnt to swim in October is through to the Ironman World Championships.

Megan Hamill, 23, made the cut despite taking a tumble from her bike during her first Ironman recently.

As volunteers rushed to get her an ambulance, she told them she needed screws to fix her broken bike seat, not medical attention.

With bloody cuts on her arms, she balanced precariously on the broken seat for the final 30 miles of the cycle, before starting the 26.2-mile run.

Four years ago my focus was on being smaller and prettier. Today my focus is on being faster and stronger. You can change the narrative and change who you are

Megan Hamill

She finished the race in Kaernten-Klagenfurt, a city in the Austrian Alps, in 15 hours and 26 minutes.

The University of Bristol student now has four months to train for the World Championships in Kona, Hawaii, which will see her again swim 2.4 miles, cycle 112 miles and run 26.2 miles.

Miss Hamill said: “I couldn’t swim in October and I trained on a second-hand road bike I bought from Facebook Marketplace, so I genuinely am ecstatic to make the World Championships.

“I wrote this as a goal in my notes app last November and now it’s actually happening – proof that it pays off to be brave and set goals that are bigger than you are.

“One thing you can’t prepare for in a race is the seat falling off your bike.

Megan Hamill only competed in her first Ironman in Austria recently (Megan Hamill/University of Bristol/PA)

“I got 130km in, lost my saddle, and I flew off with it. I then balanced on my bike seat for the remaining 50km with two sharp edges digging into my inner thighs from where the seat broke.

“The World Championships is a chance for me to show the world what I’ve really got.”

The student used to have an eating disorder, which saw her severely restrict her food intake. Now she shares her recovery with her 35,000 followers on social media.

She said: “Four years ago my focus was on being smaller and prettier. Today my focus is on being faster and stronger. You can change the narrative and change who you are.”

Miss Hamill graduates from her four-year geography with innovation master’s degree at the University of Bristol in July, and takes up a job with engineering firm Jacobs Solutions in London this September.

Megan Hamill training on her bike ahead of her competition (Megan Hamill/University of Bristol/PA)

Until then she will be training hard in her home of Portadown, County Armagh.

She said: “The next four months of training look so exciting. I’ll be exploring the cycle routes of Ireland which will give me good hill training.

“In July I’ll be doing a lot of running in the heat which will prepare me well for Hawaii’s climate.”

She added that the support from friends and family had been “incredible”.

“Honestly I couldn’t ask for better people in my life,” she said.

“My online community also kept me going. The messages I received from the most amazing people sharing their own goals is just so motivating and it keeps me on track to prove anything is possible.”