Georgia Bell and I connected after she just ran 3:56.54 at the Monaco Diamond League to become the second-fastest British woman of all time over 1500m. She had shared that she’s a fan of the show and I’ve been following her story closely this season and it’s remarkable.

She quit track five years ago after finishing up her college eligibility at Cal – but after dabbling in the duathlon, she decided to make a comeback this year. It has been nearly perfect as she has won the British 1500m indoor and outdoor national titles, finished 4th in the World Indoor Championship final, earned a European Championship silver medal and is now headed to the Olympic Games for Team GB.

She did much of it in the beginning of the year while balancing a full-time job in cybersecurity. She trains under coach Trevor Painter and Jenny Meadows and in the same training group that included Olympic silver medalist Keely Hodgkinson. Georgia explains how her training set-up works since she’s still living in London most of the time and has to do much of her own training solo – while also still incorporating a bunch of biking.

Host: Chris Chavez | ⁠@chris_j_chavez on Instagram⁠

Guest: Georgia Bell | ⁠@georgiabelltheduathlete on Instagram⁠

The following interview excerpt has been edited lightly for clarity. You can listen to the full interview with Georgia Bell on the CITIUS MAG Podcast – available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your shows.

CITIUS MAG: Did you have to reactivate a part of your brain when it came to the racing side of things compared to what you were doing in cycling?

Georgia Bell: On the one hand, I had a five-year break between my track races. That’s quite a lot. But then you've also done so many races in your life that it weirdly felt familiar. You have the same instincts of like, ‘I feel good, am I going to make a move? Here’s a gap.’ The racing side is actually the bit that I find really fun. It feels very instinct-driven. I think that just goes back to doing so many races when you're young.

CITIUS MAG: It’s really fun to see your progression. Have you had the time yet to take a step back and be like, ‘Wow, if the season ended now, this year has been a tremendous success already.’

Georgia Bell: I still know that there's more, which is exciting. It's definitely been a whirlwind six months. So much has changed. But I think at the same time, it feels really nice because when I quit track, it was (NCAA) Regionals in Austin. I'd run 4:30-something for my last 1500m. I was so ready to be done. I was very mentally and physically burnt out. But it was quite sad because I knew that I hadn't achieved my potential. I knew that there was still so much more that could have been. So even though it's happening very quickly over these past few months, it also feels like I'm righting a wrong and it just feels really good.

CITIUS MAG: How did you approach the Paris Diamond League 1500m? What was the plan going into it? Because you hadn’t broken four before and you smashed it.

Georgia Bell: What was really special about (the Paris Diamond League), apart from the amazing atmosphere, was that it was actually a race. I just slotted in and I was making moves when I felt good. I didn't know what was going on with the clock. I was just running to race. What I'm really finding is that the time is kind of a bonus. I hope that's what happens this weekend in London. I actually got a little bit boxed-in that race, too. I crossed the line and was like, ‘I know I could have actually gone quicker,’ so I'm excited to do another one this season.

On how pivoting to cycling improved her running career:

Georgia Bell: I really think that taking time away from running and just spending years building up this aerobic base through cycling must be a factor in this breakthrough that's happening now. I'm following a great training plan and Trevor (Painter) and Jenny (Meadows)’s training is definitely a factor. But I think I am a runner and a cyclist. When people say, ‘You do some cross training,’ it's like, no – I don't go on the elliptical. I don't swim. I either run or bike and both are my identity. I think I'm just a lot better at the track.

On returning to competitive running after taking a step back:

Georgia Bell: When I quit after college, I genuinely thought, ‘That's it. I'll never go back to track.’ I just wish I'd heard more stories like mine where you take a huge break, get back into something that you love, and make it to a really high level… It's just nice to know that there's not one route to make it to the Olympics.

CITIUS MAG: The goalposts have constantly moved on what will make this a successful foray back into track. At first it was just World Indoor Championships and then it was making the Olympics. What's the goal now?

Georgia Bell: There's a lot of championships next year. There’s European Indoors, there's Europeans (Outdoors), there's obviously Worlds in Tokyo too. I think we're going to be a bit more intentional about what those goals will be. If I'm also a professional athlete full-time next year, then there should be some big gains to be made there. But right now it's all about just enjoying it and having fun. I never thought I'd be good enough to do this and right now it's just the most fun thing that I could have asked for. Try my best, have fun, commit to it, and then hopefully these good times and races will continue to come.

Time Stamps:

• 5:11 - What her goals were heading into 2024.
• 6:08 - Her running background + when her running career began taking off.
• 8:03 - How her Olympic dream evolved over the past year.
• 9:51 - Her improvement from the start of 2024 to running a world-lead a few months later.
• 11:37 - Signs in training that indicated a breakthrough was coming.
• 13:03 - Why she returned to the 1500m/800m after focusing on endurance cycling.
• 14:40 - How she returned to racing on the track after five years away from it.
• 17:33 - Her takeaways from competing in the NCAA system.
• 19:00 - What she enjoys most about professional running.
• 20:09 - Details on how she uses cycling to supplement her training.
• 21:58 - Her training setup + why she mostly trains solo.
• 24:35 - Details on M11 Track Club.
• 27:19 - Why still considers herself a “dual athlete.”
• 30:22 - Breaking down running a sub-four 1500m for the first time at the Paris Diamond League.
• 34:58 - Going from working full-time to taking a sabbatical to train professionally.
• 39:57 - Her plans for what’s next between now and the Olympics.