Olympic triathlon champion Dame Flora Duffy is tackling a new challenge by going carbon-neutral.

Dame Flora, whose crowning glory came at the 2020 Tokyo Games, announced in a post on Instagram that with the support of the Apex Group, she had undergone a carbon-footprint assessment to gauge her environmental impact based on her 2022 calendar.

“It has been an enlightening journey,” she said. “I’m sure it was entertaining for them, given they usually support multinational corporations with such assessments and not endurance athletes.”

“First step, gathering all the data. This including all my travel, accommodation, listing every shoe, goggle, every bike, etc. All utilities at home, mileage driven, and then some.”

Dame Flora said that despite having solar panels at her homes and driving a fully electric car in Boulder, Colorado, the report found that her carbon footprint was ten times larger than for most people.

She said that her impact was magnified by her air travel, noting that in 2022 she travelled to Yokohama, Leeds, Montreal, Hamburg, Birmingham, Slovakia, Dallas, Bermuda, Girona, Abu Dhabi, London, South Africa and Boulder.

She added that her impact was also increased because of the supply chain of items she had purchased as a triathlete.

“I get multiple bikes, wetsuits, a lot of shoes and other training gear new each year, so my level of consumerism is very high,” she said.

“However, each season, I either donate, sell or give to friends when I am finished with the gear so at least the life cycle of the product lives on and it is not just discarded.”

She said that in an effort to offset her impact, she had supported a project through Ecologi, a British firm that offers funding opportunities for renewable energy projects, reforestation initiatives and environmental restoration work.

“While I am sure imperfect, it does feel better knowing I’ve tried to make a proportionate impact,” Dame Flora added.