{"id":658921,"date":"2025-12-28T02:33:38","date_gmt":"2025-12-28T02:33:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/658921\/"},"modified":"2025-12-28T02:33:38","modified_gmt":"2025-12-28T02:33:38","slug":"the-mum-of-four-who-gets-up-at-5-15am-to-fit-in-world-championship-training-around-her-job-as-a-childrens-doctor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/658921\/","title":{"rendered":"The mum-of-four who gets up at 5.15am to fit in world championship training around her job as a childrens’ doctor"},"content":{"rendered":"

Genevieve Thueux is clinical director of the Children’s Hospital for Wales, a paediatric consultant and mother. She gets up at 5.15am every day for her fitness routine which saw her complete four triathlons last year and qualify for world championships\"AGenevieve Thueux is Consultant Paediatrician and Clinical Director at the Children’s Hospital for Wales . Outside of medicine, she’s a triathlete (Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

Super-fit medic and triathlete Genevieve Thueux cycled, run and swum her way to qualify for three world championships in 2026 and all while working as a top doctor, hospital clinical director and mother. Genevieve, a consultant paediatrician and clinical director of the Children’s Hospital for Wales<\/a>, gets up at 5.15am every morning to train before work.<\/p>\n

Outside of medicine, she’s a triathlete and has competed in both Ironman and Ironman 70.3 events, qualifying for two World Championships, and has just achieved the rare accolade of qualifying for all three global triathlon series\u2014T100, Challenge, and Ironman in 2026.<\/p>\n

To qualify for the world championships competitors must be in the top 10 or 15 places for their race. To qualify in one band is good going but all three is a huge achievement with thousands competing and around 100 in each age group. Read the biggest stories in Wales first by signing up to our daily newsletter here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"AGenevieve Thueux in action(Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

The children’s doctor, who has been doing triathlons for four years, powered her way to fifth place in the Austria 70.3 to qualify for the 2026 world championships in that band next year in Slovakia, fifth place in the Italy Ironman Cena to qualify there and topped off her amazing run with third place in the T100 Dubai.<\/p>\n

It’s going to be a busy 2026 for Genevieve, 45, who lives in Caerleon, works in Cardiff<\/a> and between her and her partner Hywel Phillips has four children aged 15, 17, 17 and 19.<\/p>\n

\"AGenevieve Thueux at the swimming startline(Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

“I don’t know anyone else who has qualified for all three. It is a big commitment,” said Genevieve, who is trained by Matt Davies from Precision Coaching.<\/p>\n

As well as finishing in the top five in three triathlons in 2025 she completed the London Marathon this year in three and 19 minutes and the gruelling Embrun Triathlon in the French Alps, a legendary, independent extreme long-distance event held known for its tough mountain course.<\/p>\n

Reeling off her tight schedule Genevieve says she has to just “get up and go” without stopping in the early hours of the morning to fit it all in.<\/p>\n

“I train twice a day every day – 60 minutes before work, running, swimming or strength training and 90 minutes in the evening then eat dinner, have 45 minutes rest and go to bed. I go straight to sleep between 10pm and 11pm.”<\/p>\n

\"GenevieveGenevieve Thueux on the podium in third place at the Dubai Triathlon 2025.(Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

And there’s no let up at weekends, even when she’s on call for her job. On Saturdays Genevieve cycles for three to four hours and runs for between 90 minutes and three hours on Sundays.<\/p>\n

That totals around two hours swimming a week, three to four runs, two to three bike rides and two strength training sessions.<\/p>\n

“I get fear of missing out every time I see a race. It is addictive, ” she admits. “I don’t sleep much. It’s about being really organised and scheduled. I am really lucky that my partner does not work full time – he’s a retired police inspector.<\/p>\n

“I am a driven person. For me it’s just part of who I am and how life looks. When I get up at 5.15am – I don’t think, I just get up and go. I go on the treadmill or bike in my garage.<\/p>\n

“I am on call at night and weekends. If I am breathless when colleagues ring me it’s because I have been working out and I have turned up in workout clothes. My life is scheduled.”<\/p>\n

\"AGenevieve Thueux with her partner Hywel Phillips(Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

While she’s working out Genevieve listens to audio books, usually on health and wellbeing, or watches films on Netflix.<\/p>\n

\"AGenevieve cycles for three to four hours and runs for between 90 minutes and three hours on Sundays. That totals around two hours swimming a week, three to four runs, two to three bike rides and two strength training sessions.(Image: Genevieve Thueux)<\/p>\n

“Those sort of books take me into the zone. My tips on working out are, for me, that it is about schedule. Don’t think. Just get up. Don’t think or you persuade yourself not to.”<\/p>\n

Born in France Genevieve’s family moved to California when she was nine and she was sent to boarding school<\/a> in Britain before qualifying in medicine at Bristol University and coming to work in Wales in 2007.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Genevieve Thueux is clinical director of the Children’s Hospital for Wales, a paediatric consultant and mother. She gets…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":658922,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5010],"tags":[748,126128,201424,4884,16365,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-658921","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wales","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-caerleon","10":"tag-childrens-hospital-for-wales","11":"tag-great-britain","12":"tag-monmouthshire","13":"tag-uk","14":"tag-united-kingdom","15":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115794860493298548","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/658921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=658921"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/658921\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/658922"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=658921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=658921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=658921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}