Legends of Triathlon – Simon Lessing – 5 times ITU World Champion
If you ask any young triathlete which British triathlete has won five International Triathlon Union (ITU) world titles, the most likely reply would be Alistair Brownlee. But they would be wrong. Back in the 90’s a British athlete by the name of Simon Christopher Lessing, MBE, (born 12 February 1977) won four International Triathlon Union (ITU) world titles and was also the Long-Distance Triathlon World Champion.
He was the best swimmer, best cyclist and best runner in the sport, no one could touch Lessing when he was on form.
In 2014, Simon Lessing was rightly inducted into the International Triathlon Union inaugural Hall of Fame.
Lessing was born in South Africa but moved to Britain at age 18. He was one of the dominant triathletes in the 1990s, and was on the ITU World Championship podium seven times, winning five world titles (1992, 1995, 1996 and 1998) as well as two silvers and a bronze. Lessing broke the Olympic distance triathlon world record with a time of 1 hour, 39 minutes, 50 seconds in 1996 at the ITU Triathlon World Championships in Cleveland having won the previous year the Long-Distance Triathlon World Championship title in Nice, 1995. Lessing use to compete in the ‘Escape from Alcatraz’ Triathlon held annually in San Francisco Bay and won the men’s elite division there three times: 1996, 2003 and 2004.
Having set the Olympic distance triathlon record, the only thing missing from his his résumé was an Olympic medal. But when the triathlon celebrated its Olympic debut in Sydney in 2000, Lessing was no longer among the very best in this event and despite entering the race as one of the favourites came up short finishing in 9th place.
Wednesday, September 25, 1974 – the day Triathlon could have died!
After a decade of dominance Lessing wrapped up his ITU career in 2003, and turned his attention to the long-distance triathlon. Having won the Long-Distance World Championship title in 1995 he went on to win many events mostly in the 70.3 or Half Ironman category, including the inaugural Ironman 70.3 Florida in 2004, and again in 2005. In 2005, he set a then course record at the Wildflower Triathlon. The next year he took first place at the Ironman 70.3 Vineman. In August 2007, Lessing won the Ironman Timberman 70.3.
In July 2004, Lessing qualified for the 2004 Ironman World Championships with a win in his Ironman debut in Lake Placid in 2004, whilst shattering the course record. In his first appearance at the Ironman World Championships (2004) he dropped out halfway into the bike leg, due a reoccurring problem with his back. His swansong was the inaugural Ironman 70.3 World Championships in 2006, finishing second before retiring in 2008.
The distinction between Lessing and Brownlee would be incredibly narrow, as both athletes were similarly dominant at their peaks in the hyper-competitive ITU. Lessing remains the winner of more triathlon victories than anyone else in history and was the first man to win multiple ITU world titles; he held the record for most career ITU world titles (four) until Spain’s Javier Gomez won his fifth in 2015. Lessing started 37 races over the course of his 13-year ITU career. He finished on the podium in 27 of those races, winning on 22 occasions. He only finished outside the top 10 twice.
ITU Career: 1990 – 2003
4x ITU World Champion (1992, 1995, 1996, 1998)
2 ITU World Championship silver medals (1993, 1999)
ITU World Championship – bronze medal (1997)
Long-Distance Triathlon World Champion (1995)
7 ITU World Cup wins
3x European Champion
Olympian
Having retired from professional racing in 2008, Lessing now resides in Boulder, Colorado, United States, where he operates Boulder Coaching with Darren de Reuck, to help triathletes reach their sporting potential.
