Trust doctor Tamsin Lewis from Barnes is facing a tough choice between her career and her dream of representing Britain at the London 2012 Olympics.

Lewis, a specialty registrar in psychiatry, won a gold medal in the women’s 30-34 age category at last month’s World Triathlon Championships in Australia and finished with the third fastest time in the event overall.

The 30-year-old said: “It is my dream to represent my country in the Olympics.

“But at the moment I am constantly chasing my tail and have very little down time, especially as I am taking my final Royal College of Psychiatrists exam on October 22.

“I need to make the decision about whether to take time out of my work schedule to train full-time with the aim of potentially being selected for the Olympic team.

“However, I need to attract sponsorship to cover racing, training and travel costs which is difficult in the current financial market, but necessary if I want to meet my bigger goals.”

Lewis said she was not as nervous as normal at the start of her race Down Under because her preparation for the 1.5km swim, 40m cycle ride and 10km run had gone well.

“When the gun went I was determined to get clear water – and that’s what happened,” she said.

“I led out of the swim, pushed ahead with my lead on the bike and maintained this on the run to win by more than a minute-and-a-half over a local Australian girl.

“Once I was over the line, I lay on my back and was asked if I required medical attention. I just replied ‘no thanks, I’m on top of the world’.”