Jonathan Brownlee

Jonathan Brownlee is a triathlon royalty with three Olympic medals and some of the sport’s most iconic moments to his name. In 2024 he has teamed up with his double-Gold winning brother, Alistair  to launch Brownlee Racing, a new endurance racing team which will make its debut in this year's supertri League. 

 Jonathan grew up with his older brother Alistair and younger sibling Edward in the village of Bramhope in Leeds. He had a strong sporting influence from his father Keith, a runner and his mother, Cathy, a swimmer. Alistair led the way for the brothers being two years older than Jonathan and was already keen on swimming and running cross country from a young age.

Jonny joined the local Aireborough Swimming Club, where his backstroke record for 9 to 10-year-old boys still stands. Both brothers attended Bradford Grammar School, where their love of triathlon developed further. Alistair won gold at the European Junior Championships in 2006 and decided to turn pro. Just two years later, Jonny took bronze in the same event and the World equivalent. With the brothers having attended the University of Leeds and under the coaching of the legendary Malcolm Brown, they developed rapidly into two stars of the sport.

Jonny’s debut in the WTS came in 2009. He set an unbelievable record of finishing on the podium in every race he competed in from July 2010 to May 2104 – a remarkable 42 events. That memorably included a home Olympics in London in 2012, where he and Alistair shone in Hyde Park with the older brother taking gold. Jonny had to endure a 15-second penalty after an error heading into transition but fought back to pick up a bronze medal.

Another incredible Olympic day in Rio in 2016 saw Alistair top the podium again, pulling away in the run in the final stages ahead of Jonny, who this time collected a silver. As if their legacy needed enshrining still further, they dominated headlines across the world in September 2016 when Jonny collapsed in the heat of Cozumel. Alistair gave up the chance to win the race to carry his brother over the line.

Jonny competed at what he then described as his last Olympics in Tokyo. He came fifth in the individual event and completed the entire haul of medals with a gold as part of Great Britain’s Mixed Relay team alongside Georgia Taylor-Brown, Jess Learmonth and Alex Yee.

He secured another third place Championship Series finish in 2021 thanks to finishing third in London, second in Munich and Jersey and seventh in Malibu. He had an unfortunate start to 2022 as he was involved in a bike crash at WTCS Leeds that left him with a fractured scaphoid in his wrist. He was back for the Championship Series and finished second at the Grand Finale in NEOM and in 3rd place in the series for the second year in a row.

In 2023, Brownlee's best result was second place at the Europe Triathlon Championship, which turned into a duathlon in Madrid. Struggling to find his usual form on the WTCS circuit, his highest finish was 17th in Montreal. 

In 2024, he finished 38th at WTCS Yokohama and secured third place at the Europe Triathlon Cup Kielce, in what seemed to be a trial for Britain's second Olympic team spot for Paris.

Jonny was not selected for the 2024 Olympic squad as Team GB chose to go with Sam Dickinson as support for gold medal hopeful Alex Yee.