Ocean Rower GB Triathlete Yacht Skipper Ultrarunner Cancer Survivor Mother
Liz speaks about her extraordinary story.
And ultimately asks the question;
"What Does Success Look Like?”

Liz speaks about her extraordinary story.
And ultimately asks the question;
"What Does Success Look Like?”
I think it is fair to say that I have packed a great deal into life (so far).
But it has not always been plain sailing
(see the full story and photos below).
I have always worked to be the best version of 'me' that I can be.
I have grabbed opportunities as they have come along, always looking forward for the next 'thing'.
I have learnt (of
I think it is fair to say that I have packed a great deal into life (so far).
But it has not always been plain sailing
(see the full story and photos below).
I have always worked to be the best version of 'me' that I can be.
I have grabbed opportunities as they have come along, always looking forward for the next 'thing'.
I have learnt (often the hard way) how to motivate myself and to always see the positives in life. Because whether 'good or bad' life is all about experiences!
At the heart of my approach is the belief that everyone has the potential to achieve 'success'.
But "what does success look like?"
We can't all be; Usain Bolt or Mark Zuckerberg or Simone Byles or Oprah Winfrey (and we don't necessarily want to be!) ... so what is our own version of success, and how do we stay honest and focussed on our own 'success' to turn dreams into achievements?
We are all unique.
We all have our own ideas, talents, perspectives and motivations.
Society often drives us down a very narrow definition of what it means to be 'successful'.
And I have found myself questioning this at many points in my life.
We are all unique.
We all have our own ideas, talents, perspectives and motivations.
Society often drives us down a very narrow definition of what it means to be 'successful'.
And I have found myself questioning this at many points in my life.
It is so important that we define 'our success' for ourselves and not be led by others' ideologies.
I use my own experience, my own dreams and my own pathway to ask the question:
"What Does Success Look Like"?
Liz’s positive drive to live life to the full has led her to meet her challenges head on.
Qualifying as a Yachtmaster Instructor aged just 21, she went on to lead sailing expeditions around the UK before sailing solo to Greece.
In 2005-06 she took on the might of the Atlantic Rowing Race, along with her fiancée. Encountering hurricanes, tropical storms, whales, serious injuries, capsizes and equipment failure, before reaching the Caribbean and becoming the 13th woman ever to row an ocean and the first woman in history row into Antigua.
Not being one to rest on her laurels, and whilst holding down a full time job and tackling (possibly the hardest challenge of them all) ‘motherhood’, she then returned to her passion of triathlon and Ironman events.
In 2018 she qualified to represent GB in her age group at both Olympic and Ironman distances and raced in the GB colours from 2018-2022.
It was at the World Championships in Abu Dhabi in November 2022 that Liz first noticed a rapidly growing lump on her tonsil which coincided with a neck lump on the same side, and following a series of investigations, she was diagnosed with throat cancer 4 weeks later.
Liz underwent a brand new 7-week, million-pound, trial treatment of proton beam therapy at The Christie Hospital in Manchester in 2023, which left her with radiotherapy burns both inside and outside her throat.
Whilst now in remission, she remains under the care of the hospital and will live with the life-changing side effects of this treatment forever. But wasting no time, Liz is now back taking on ultra marathon running and is planning her next 100km event later this year, with sights on 100 milers in the future.
Liz talks with honesty and humility about the challenges she has faced in life. Both those that she has chosen and those that life has chosen to throw at her. She describes finding joy in all the small things, her coping mechanisms, never settling for ‘okay’ and the drive to always keep moving forward, that can be applied across all walks of life.
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