The Toughest Finish Line

This week on The Toughest Finish Line , I’m joined by Micheál Costello to hear a powerful story of recovery, resilience, and redefining what success really means. Michael opens up about his battle with an eating disorder and exercise addiction, sharing how these challenges once controlled every aspect of his life. He explains how, through hard work and a shift in mindset, he was able to build a he...

This week on The Toughest Finish Line , I'm joined by professional triathlete Nikki Bartlett for an honest and inspiring conversation about a career that was never part of the plan. From learning to swim later in life to becoming one of the UK's top professional triathletes, Nikki shares the twists, turns and setbacks that shaped her journey. We dive into the challenges she's faced alo...

This week on The Toughest Finish Line , we’re joined by Lara Giusti to talk about how one life-changing experience led to the creation of a nutrition brand now helping endurance athletes around the world. Lara shares the story of how her husband’s health suddenly changed after being admitted to hospital and undergoing major surgery. Following this, he struggled to tolerate food in the same way, so...

This week on The Toughest Finish Line, we’re joined by Andy Long for a powerful conversation about identity, resilience, and finding purpose beyond elite sport. Andy opens up about life as a professional rugby player, earning England honours, and the difficult reality of being forced to step away from the game he loved. From the highs of elite sport to the challenges of transitioning into the corp...

In this episode of The Toughest Finish Line Podcast, Dan shares how a toxic work environment left him battling anxiety, self-doubt, and a loss of confidence that affected every part of his life. Through endurance sport, he slowly rebuilt his resilience, mindset, and belief in himself, lessons that would help him become a successful CEO of a school supporting children with special educational needs...

What happens when you achieve everything you thought you wanted… but still feel like you’re fighting on the inside? In this powerful episode, we hear the story of a woman who survived childhood abuse and neglect, and went on to chase her dream of becoming a professional dance, performing on some of the biggest stages in the world. From the outside, it looked like she’d made it. But behind the scen...

In this episode of The Toughest Finish Line , we welcome an extraordinary ultra-endurance athlete who is redefining what’s possible and putting Scotland firmly on the endurance map, all while balancing life as a mum. From conquering brutal channel swims to completing the legendary Enduroman Arch to Arc, she’s taken on some of the toughest endurance challenges in the world and is smashing records a...

In this episode of The Toughest Finish Line, we’re joined by the incredible voice behind some of the most emotional moments in triathlon - Joanne Murphy. As a legendary race announcer at Ironman events around the world, Joanne has welcomed thousands of athletes across the finish line, delivering those unforgettable words every triathlete dreams of hearing: “You are an Ironman.” But behind the micr...

In this powerful episode of The Toughest Finish Line , we hear the incredible story of a former UK military serviceman whose life changed in an instant. After a horrific injury during his time in the military led to the loss of a limb, he found himself facing one of the darkest chapters of his life. Struggling with trauma, identity loss and the challenge of rebuilding life after service, he reache...

In this powerful episode of The Toughest Finish Line , we sit down with an incredible guest who shares her experience as a Black woman in sport - navigating spaces where she was often the only one in the room, the start pen, or on the podium. Told at times that she “couldn’t,” “shouldn’t,” or “didn’t belong,” she chose to lace up anyway. We talk about representation, resilience, and the weight of...

In this powerful episode, we dive into the inspiring journey of an athlete currently training to swim the Channel - one of the toughest endurance challenges in the world. She opens up about her past battle with an eating disorder, how she fought her way back to health, and how those experiences now fuel her mindset, resilience, and purpose in training. We talk honestly about the realities of prepa...

In this powerful World Cancer Day special, we share the story of an extraordinary woman taking on an epic challenge: swimming, cycling, and running around the UK to raise awareness of how movement can support mental health and people affected by cancer. Her journey isn’t just about miles and medals, t’s about hope, healing, and the transformative power of movement during some of life’s toughest mo...

In this episode, we speak with an incredible swimmer, Amber Keegan whose competitive career was cut short by injury, a serious car accident, and an eating disorder. Forced to step away from the sport that once defined her, she faced the challenge of rebuilding her identity beyond the pool. This honest conversation explores loss, recovery, and resilience — and how she has transformed adversity into...

In this episode, we speak with a professional athlete whose racing career was forced to pause when ill health changed everything. For someone whose identity was built on performance and competition, stepping away from the start line was one of the toughest challenges he’s ever faced. But the story didn’t end there. Through recovery, reflection, and resilience, he channelled his experiences into be...

As the year comes to a close, we take a moment to look back at just some of the incredible voices and stories shared on the podcast over the past twelve months. From moments of doubt and adversity to breakthroughs, resilience, and quiet determination, each guest has offered something powerful about what it truly means to keep going. In this reflective episode, we revisit key insights and standout...

She was a dedicated runner long before three autoimmune diseases changed her life—but she never stopped. In this inspiring episode, Dr Maggie Osa shares how running has become continued to help her, even when she faces the possibility of her conditions progressing. A story of courage, movement, and the power of refusing to give up.

In this episode of The Toughest Finish Line , we sit down with Bianca Fernandez-Clark, Chair of Women in Tri and a powerful voice for change in the endurance world. Bianca opens up about the challenges she’s faced throughout her own sporting journey — from navigating barriers in access and representation to overcoming the personal hurdles that shaped her path in triathlon. Now, she’s using that li...

In this episode of The Toughest Finish Line , we meet an extraordinary woman who has redefined what’s possible — setting a new world record as the fastest autistic female in the ironman distance . Marlynne's story isn’t just about speed; it’s about strength, courage, and the power of showing up as your true self. She opens up about navigating life and sport through the lens of autism, the chal...

Meet the lady who defied the odds, more than once. In this raw and inspiring episode, we dive deep into the story of a mother who battled the darkest corners of her mind and body. Diagnosed with OCD, she faced overwhelming mental health struggles after a car accident, that led to multiple suicide attempts. But despite weighing 20 stone and having four children under the age of three, Amy shares ho...

He's the voice that has inspired millions across finish lines across the world. In this episode we sit down with Mike Reilly, the man who created the iconic phrase "You are an Ironman!". Mike shares the story behind those unforgettable words, as well as what life was like as a race announcer for one of the toughest finish lines in the world.

He survived the mother of all surgeries and set himself the goal to complete and Ironman 10 months after his surgery. Paul shares his incredibly inspiring story.

An incredible journey of losing 19.5 stone to the Ironman start line. A powerful story of resilience, transformation, and proving nothing is impossible.

Lisa Ann shares her incredible story of how she was homeless and experienced years of abuse and neglect, yet she has gone on to cross some epic sporting finish lines. This is a pure example of how resilience can help you through anything.

Within this episode Holly shares how despite being labelled and told she wouldn't achieve anything as a child, and then breaking her back in a car accident, this hasn't stopped her. Going on to compete in the gravel bike races, 4 x Ironman 70.3 world championships and is currently training for the Ironman World Championships, Holly's story is truly inspirational.

Within this episode Katy shares the story of how she coped after her Dad died by suicide. Katy openly talks about how she felt and what helped her day by day, including setting an epic challenge of cycling the entire UK coastline by herself to raise awareness of suicide and to support others. Useful links referenced by Katy - https://www.papyrus-uk.org/ https://sossilenceofsuicide.org/ https://www...