Hollie Elliott is suitably diplomatic when addressing her recent switch in allegiance to Triathlon Ireland. There are, she says, certain pros and cons to moving away from Great Britain. Either way, this is entirely her own choice.
At 26, Elliott is also of prime age and on the right trajectory to qualify for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 – and she’ll be doing everything possible to get there. Only 988 days to go . . .
“I do want to go to the Olympics and guess I can be a front-runner in Ireland,” she says. “I’ve always had eligibility for either.
“But I went down the British route, purely by [that] being my triathlon journey. I was in the school system in the UK, but I never really knew about the choice of choosing one at the time. I mean, I wanted to change. And it seemed like the perfect time to move over.”
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After representing GB until June 2024, she required several months of a transition period before her eligibility change kicked in for this season. She is now Ireland’s top-ranked woman and also believes Triathlon Ireland can qualify a mixed relay team for LA (two men and two women).
Her father, Des, hails from Cookstown in Tyrone and her mother, Joanne, is from North Yorkshire, where Elliott grew up, just outside Middlesbrough. She attended the University of Leeds, studying law. With that degree safely in hand, she’s fully committed to triathlon.
Elliott is now based at the Triathlon Ireland training centre in Limerick. She attended the Olympic Federation of Ireland (OFI) offices in Dublin on Thursday, where she was named as one of the recipients of the IOC Olympic Scholarship fund, which will see over €275,000 distributed among eight athletes and two teams. It’s worth up to €26,500 for each recipient over the four-year cycle.
Elliott had previously been supported by British Triathlon. Once she got to know some of her fellow competitors racing for Ireland, the more intimate and personal team atmosphere felt more to her liking.
“I’d go on trips with the GB guys, they were fun. But it was always different people. Then I went on a trip with the Irish people and it was the same people each time,” she said.
“It was like, ‘we can actually really have a team here who are the same people’. We can progress together and I think the mixed-team relay was a driving point for me – being part of that team in Ireland. At the end of the day, I just want to race and be the best I can be.
“Obviously bigger federations have bigger support systems, but then smaller federations have other advantages. It’s a smaller federation here; it’s nice, you kind of know everyone. Travelling as a team and training together.”
After Irish triathletes secured places at the Olympics in Tokyo, Rio and London, there was no Irish representation in Paris. That in itself is another motivation for Elliott. Erin McConnell will also be working hard towards LA on the women’s side, and James Edgar on the men’s side. That qualification process gets under way from next May.
“That’s literally what my whole next 2½ years will be focused around,” said Elliott. “I think not having anyone in Paris obviously was disappointing, but we’re desperate to not let that happen again. I’d love for a mixed relay team to go alongside me, but yeah, for sure I want to be there. But the main goal is to be ranked within the top 55 in the Olympic ranking system by May 28th.”
Elliott enjoyed a few top-10 places in World and European Cup events this season. She will probably focus more on the World Series events next year – a higher level of competition, but with more ranking points.
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She’s still got two World Cup events to go, in Japan on November 9th, then South Korea on the 15th. “I’m kind of crawling to Monday, before I go to my last two races,” she said. “I actually started in February, with a mixed-team relay in Abu Dhabi, so I’m hoping to end on a high with my two World Cups next week.
“But I definitely want to progress that next year. I always want to be at the front of the race. Everyone obviously wants to win, but I think next year I really want to come out [and race] at the ability I am actually training at. And then, 2027, I will look to focus on the World Series. Ready to be racing against the girls that will be in LA.”
Though her father and older sister Abbe were also competitive swimmers, Elliott’s triathlon pursuit was entirely her own choice. “I remember my mum being like, ‘you already do enough with one, we’re not doing three’. And I was like, ‘no, no, like hear me out, we will reduce the swimming to make way for the others’.”
LA 2028 IOC Olympic Scholarship recipients: Andrew Coscoran (Athletics), Aoife O’Brien (Cycling), Evan Bailey (Swimming), Ewan McMahon (Sailing), Grace Davison (Swimming), Hollie Elliott (Triathlon), Kate O’Connor (Athletics), Ronan Byrne (Rowing), Basketball 3x3 (Women), Hockey (Men).
