Triathlete India Lee revealed that topping up on home comforts was the key to her podium finish at the T100 Ibiza.
The 36-year-old, born in Hampshire and now based in Bath, failed to finish at last week's IRONMAN World Championships in Nice - one of her key targets for the season.
Lee turned it around in the space of six days to finish third in the T100 race, beating the Balearic heat to continue her good run in the inaugural World Tour season.
"I made a decision to go away for six weeks, thinking I was doing everything I could to prepare for the World Championships," said Lee.
"In the end, I got really homesick and was pretty miserable going into the race. I had a terrible day.
"Two days at home, I was like a new person and I was so motivated to prove that I'd put all of the work in and that it hadn't been a waste of time. To get a solid result, I'm really chuffed and it was a good day."
Such a gritty performance from India Lee 👏
— T100 Triathlon World Tour (@t100triathlon) September 28, 2024
She holds off the fast flying Ashleigh Gentle to claim her first podium since winning Miami T100 at the beginning of the year 🥉 pic.twitter.com/NC1CIZvnmy
Lee showed her strength by earning a place in a front group of athletes after the 2km swim, building a healthy lead on the chasing pack going into the bike leg.
The riding strength of USA's Taylor Knibb broke up the race as she carved out a lead of more than a minute after the first lap of the 80km ride.
Lee was at the forefront of the chasing group that tried to keep the gap down but she could not prevent Knibb from opening up a three-minute advantage.
The Brit was passed by Swiss debutant Julie Derron but held on to third place and could not hold back her emotion on crossing the finish line.
It was Lee's second podium finish of the T100 season and puts her second in the overall standings with two races to go as the pros head to Las Vegas next month ahead of November's final in Dubai.
"I'm really pleased," said Lee. "The last ten days have been pretty tough after a bad race and a bad experience.
"It sets me up really well, I've had two podiums and two other solid results. It means I can roll the dice a bit in the last couple of races. I'm just going to try my very best."
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