Ellie Downie facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Ellie Downie MBE
Downie at the 2015 European Championships in Montpellier, France.
Personal information
Full name	Elissa Rebecca Downie
Country represented	Great Britain  England
Born	(1999-07-20) 20 July 1999 (age 26) Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England
Height	157 cm (5 ft 2 in)
Discipline	Women's artistic gymnastics
Years on national team	2012–2023 (GBR)
Club	Notts Gymnastics Academy
Head coach(es)	Jo Miller
Music	2014: "Señorita" by Bond 2015: "Why Don't You" by Gramophonedzie 2016: "Skeletons" by Drehz 2017: "Boneless" by Steve Aoki
Retired	23 January 2023
Medal record Event 1st 2nd 3rd World Championships 0 0 2 European Championships 1 6 3 Representing  Great Britain World Championships Bronze 2015 Glasgow Team Bronze 2019 Stuttgart Vault European Championships Gold 2017 Cluj-Napoca All-Around Silver 2016 Bern Team Silver 2016 Bern Vault Silver 2016 Bern Floor Exercise Silver 2017 Cluj-Napoca Vault Silver 2017 Cluj-Napoca Floor Exercise Silver 2019 Szczecin All-Around Bronze 2015 Montpellier All-Around Bronze 2017 Cluj-Napoca Uneven Bars Bronze 2019 Szczecin Vault Youth Olympic Games Silver 2014 Nanjing Vault Bronze 2014 Nanjing All-Around Bronze 2014 Nanjing Balance Beam Bronze 2014 Nanjing Floor Exercise FIG World Cup Event 1st 2nd 3rd World Challenge Cup 4 0 0

Elissa Rebecca "Ellie" Downie, born on July 20, 1999, is a retired artistic gymnast from Great Britain. She made history by becoming the 2017 European gymnastics champion in the all-around event. This was the first time a British gymnast won such a big all-around title.

Ellie is the younger sister of Becky Downie, who is also a famous gymnast. Ellie first became well-known as a junior gymnast at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics. There, she won an amazing four medals. When she was just 15, she became the first British woman to win an individual all-around medal at the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships in 2015.

Later in 2015, she was part of the team that won Britain's first ever team medal at a World Championships. This was a bronze medal at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. At the 2017 European Championships, she made history again. She became the first British gymnast to win the all-around title at a major international competition. Ellie announced her retirement from gymnastics on January 23, 2023.

Ellie's Junior Career

Ellie Downie competed at the 2014 European Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria. She won a gold medal on vault. She also earned a silver medal with the British team and a bronze medal in the all-around competition.

Because of her great performance, she was chosen to compete at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China. At these games, she won four medals. She got a silver medal on vault and bronze medals in the all-around, balance beam, and floor exercise.

Ellie's Senior Career

Starting as a Senior in 2015

Ellie started her senior career at the 2015 British Championships. She won silver medals on vault and uneven bars. She also earned a bronze medal in the all-around competition. After this, she was chosen for the British team for the 2015 European Artistic Gymnastics Championships. Her sister, Becky Downie, was also on this team.

At the European Championships, Ellie did very well in the qualifying rounds. She made it to the finals for the individual all-around, vault, and uneven bars. On April 17, she competed in the all-around final. She finished third, winning the first individual all-around medal for a British female gymnast at the European Championships.

Ellie was named the Sky Sports Sportswoman of the Month for April 2015. On December 20, she was also named the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.

Success in 2016

In May 2016, Ellie Downie won all four individual event titles at the FIG World Cup event in Osijek, Croatia. She was the first gymnast to do this at a World Cup since 1975. The next month, at the 2016 European Championships in Bern, Switzerland, she won three silver medals. These were for the team event, vault, and floor exercise.

In July, she was chosen for the British team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. Her sister Becky Downie was also on this team.

Olympic Games Experience

During the qualifying rounds at the Olympics, Ellie had a fall on her head during a tumbling pass on floor. She could not finish her routine. However, she bravely returned in the next rotation and performed two vaults. She still qualified for the all-around final in 20th place. In the final, she improved her performance and finished 13th. The British women's team finished fifth in the team competition.

Making History in 2017

In April 2017, Ellie represented Great Britain at the European Championships in Cluj-Napoca, Romania. She made history by qualifying for all five individual finals. The next day, she became the first British gymnast to win the all-around title at a major international competition. She also won silver medals on vault and floor exercise, and a bronze medal on the uneven bars.

In August, she had surgery on her ankle because of an injury. This injury had bothered her at both the British and European Championships that year. Because of the surgery, Ellie could not compete at the 2017 World Championships.

2018 and 2019 Competitions

Ellie had planned to compete at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. However, her ankle was still causing problems, so she did not compete for most of that year.

In September, Ellie was named to the team for the World Championships in Doha, Qatar. The team finished ninth in the qualifying rounds and did not make it to the team final. Ellie competed in the all-around final and finished 11th.

In 2019, Ellie competed at the British Championships. She placed first in the all-around, on vault, and on floor exercise. At the European Championships, Ellie qualified for the all-around final in fourth place and the vault final in first. In the all-around final, she finished second. She also won a bronze medal in the vault final.

In September 2019, Ellie was chosen for the team to compete at the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart. During the qualifying rounds, Ellie helped Great Britain finish seventh. This earned them a spot in the team final and qualified a team for Great Britain for the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. In the vault final, Ellie won a bronze medal. This was her first individual World Championships medal. Her sister Becky also won her first individual World Championships medal that day.

2020 and 2021 Challenges

In early 2020, Ellie was selected to represent Great Britain at the Birmingham World Cup. However, this event was later canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.

In May 2021, British Gymnastics announced that Ellie would take time away from gymnastics. This was to be with her family after the sudden death of her 24-year-old brother, Joshua. This meant she could not compete in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.

Personal Life

Ellie is the sister of Becky Downie, who competed in the Olympics in 2008 and 2016. Ellie went to Rushcliffe School in Nottingham until the summer of 2015.

Honours and Awards

In April 2022, Ellie and her sister Becky received special honorary degrees in sport from Nottingham Trent University.

Ellie and Becky Downie were both given the title of Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). This was announced in the 2024 New Year Honours list for their contributions to gymnastics. They received their awards together from Princess Anne at Windsor Castle in early March 2024.

Images for kids

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  Ellie Downie at the 2015 European Championships.

See also

In Spanish: Ellie Downie para niños