Kelly Holmes facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Dame Kelly Holmes
DBE

Holmes at the 2004 Summer Olympics
Personal information
Born	(1970-04-19) 19 April 1970 (age 55) Pembury, Kent, England
Height	1.64 m
Military career
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army Women's Royal Army Corps (1988–1992) Adjutant General's Corps (1992–1997)
Years of service	1988–1997
Rank	Sergeant
Sport
Country	Great Britain England
Sport	Running
Event(s)	800 metres, 1500 m
Club	Middlesex Ladies/ESM
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	800 m: 1:56.21 (Monaco 1995) 1500 m: 3:57.90 (Athens 2004) Indoors 800 m: 1:59.21i (Ghent 2003)
Medal record Women's athletics Representing  Great Britain Olympic Games Gold 2004 Athens 800 m Gold 2004 Athens 1500 m Bronze 2000 Sydney 800 m World Championships Silver 1995 Gothenburg 1500 m Silver 2003 Paris 800 m Bronze 1995 Gothenburg 800 m World Indoor Championships Silver 2003 Birmingham 1500 m European Championships Silver 1994 Helsinki 1500 m Bronze 2002 Munich 800 m Representing  England Commonwealth Games Gold 1994 Victoria 1500 m Gold 2002 Manchester 1500 m Silver 1998 Kuala Lumpur 1500 m

Dame Kelly Holmes (born 19 April 1970) is a famous British athlete who used to run middle-distance races. She is also known for her work on television.

Kelly Holmes was especially good at the 800 and 1500 metre races. She won two gold medals for these races at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. She also set many British records, and still holds the records for the 600 and 1000 metre distances.

When she was young, Kelly was inspired by other British runners. She started competing in middle-distance events. She joined the British Army, but kept running in army sports events. In 1993, she became a professional athlete. In 1994, she won the 1500 metre race at the Commonwealth Games and a silver medal at the European Championships. She won a silver and a bronze medal at the 1995 World Championships.

Kelly faced many injuries over the years. She did not win a medal at her first Olympics in Atlanta in 1996 because of a stress fracture. She won a silver medal in the 1500 metre race at the 1998 Commonwealth Games. At the 2000 Sydney Olympics, she won a bronze medal in the 800 metre race. This was her first Olympic medal.

In 2002, Kelly won the 1500 metre race at the Commonwealth Games. She also won an 800 metre bronze medal at the European Championships. In 2003, she won silver medals at the World Indoor Championships and the World Championships.

Her biggest success came in 2004 at the Athens Olympics. She won two gold medals, becoming an Olympic Champion in both the 800 and 1500 metre races. For her amazing achievements, she received many awards. She was made a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2005. Kelly retired from athletics in 2005. She has since become a motivational speaker and written five books. She also appears on television.

Early Life and Army Career

Kelly Holmes was born in Pembury, Kent, England. Her mother was Pam Norman and her father was Derrick Holmes. Her mother was 17 when Kelly was born. Seven years later, her mother married Michael Norris, whom Kelly considers her father. Kelly grew up in Hildenborough, Kent. She went to Hildenborough CEP School and then Hugh Christie Comprehensive School.

She started training for athletics at age 12. She joined Tonbridge Athletics Club. In 1983, she won the English Schools 1500 metres. Her hero was the British runner Steve Ovett. She was inspired by his success at the 1980 Summer Olympics.

Later, Kelly decided to join the British Army at age 18. Before that, she worked in a sweet shop and as a nursing assistant. In the army, she drove large vehicles for the Women's Royal Army Corps (WRAC). She then became a physical training instructor (PTI). Kelly was very good at sports in the army. She became the British Army judo champion. At one athletics event, she won the 800 metres, 3000 metres, and a relay race all in one day. She also won the heptathlon.

Kelly watched the 1992 Summer Olympics on TV. She saw an athlete named Lisa York compete. Kelly had raced against Lisa before and had beaten her. This made Kelly decide to return to athletics. For several years, she balanced her army work with her athletics. In 1997, she received more funding and became a full-time athlete.

Athletics Career Highlights

Early Successes Before Athens

Before the Athens Olympics, Kelly won many important medals. She earned gold medals at the Commonwealth Games. She also won silver medals at the World and European Championships. In 2000, she won a bronze medal at the Sydney Olympics.

2004 Athens Olympic Games Achievements

Kelly Holmes on parade after her Olympic wins.

In 2004, Kelly arrived at the Athens Olympics without any injuries. This was a rare and important moment in her career. She had planned to only compete in the 1500 metre race. However, after winning a race against Jolanda Čeplak before the Olympics, many people thought she should also try the 800 metre race. Kelly decided to compete in both events just five days before the 800 metre final.

Kelly was one of the top favorites for the 800 metre gold medal. In the final race, she ran smartly. She did not rush at the start like some others. She took the lead on the last bend and won the gold medal. She finished ahead of Hasna Benhassi and Jolanda Čeplak. Kelly became the seventh British woman to win an athletics gold medal. She was also the second British woman to win the 800 metres, after Ann Packer in 1964.

In the 1500 metre final, Kelly again started from the back of the field. She took the lead in the final straight part of the track. She held off the World Champion, Tatyana Tomashova of Russia, to win her second gold medal. This made her only the third woman in history to win both the 800 and 1500 metre races at the same Olympics. She was also Britain's first double gold medallist at the same games since Albert Hill in 1920. Her time of 3 minutes 57.90 seconds in the 1500 metre final set a new British record.

After her two victories, Kelly had the honor of carrying the British flag. This happened at the closing ceremony of the games on 29 August. A special parade was held for her in Hildenborough and Tonbridge on 1 September. About 40,000 people came to celebrate her success. Kelly won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in 2004. She said she achieved her goals after "20 years of dreaming."

Personal Best Running Times

Competition Record of Kelly Holmes

Representing  Great Britain and  England

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Event	Result
1993	World Championships	Stuttgart, Germany	5th (sf)	800 m	1:58.64
1994	Commonwealth Games	Victoria, British Columbia, Canada	1st	1500 m	4:08.86
	European Championships	Helsinki, Finland	2nd	1500 m	4:19.30
	IAAF World Cup	London, England	3rd	1500 m	4:10.81
	European Cup	Birmingham, England	2nd	1500 m	4:06.48
1995	World Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	3rd	800 m	1:56.95
			2nd	1500 m	4:03.04
	European Cup	Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France	1st	1500 m	4:07.02
1996	European Cup	Madrid, Spain	2nd	800 m	1:58.20
	Olympic Games	Atlanta, Georgia, United States	4th	800 m	1:58.81
			11th	1500 m	4:07.46
1997	European Cup	Munich, Germany	1st	1500 m	4:04.79
1998	Commonwealth Games	Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia	2nd	1500 m	4:06.10
1999	World Championships	Seville, Spain	4th (sf)	800 m	2:00.77
2000	Summer Olympics	Sydney, Australia	3rd	800 m	1:56.80
			7th	1500 m	4:08.02
2001	World Championships	Edmonton, Canada	6th	800 m	1:59.76
2002	European Championships	Munich, Germany	3rd	800 m	1:59.83
			11th (h)	1500 m	4:08.11
	Commonwealth Games	Manchester, England	1st	1500 m	4:05.99
2003	World Championships	Paris, France	2nd	800 m	2:00.18
	World Indoor Championships	Birmingham, England	2nd	1500 m	4:02.66
	IAAF World Athletics Final	Monte Carlo, Monaco	2nd	800 m	1:59.92
2004	World Indoor Championships	Budapest, Hungary	9th	1500 m	4:12.30
	Summer Olympics	Athens, Greece	1st	800 m	1:56.38
			1st	1500 m	3:57.90
	IAAF World Athletics Final	Monte Carlo, Monaco	1st	1500 m	4:04.55

• Note: Kelly Holmes has also won 12 national titles in addition to these achievements.

Honours and Awards Received

	Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE)	(Civil Division) 2005 "for services to athletics". She received this honour from HM The Queen at Buckingham Palace on 9 March 2005.
	Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE)	(Military Division) 1998 "for services to the British Army".

In 2007, she received an Honorary Doctorate from Loughborough University. In 2010, Kelly Holmes was added to the England Athletics Hall of Fame. From 2018 until November 2024, she was an honorary colonel with the Royal Armoured Corps Training Regiment.

Dame Kelly Holmes Trust

In 2008, Kelly Holmes started the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust. This is a charity that helps young athletes. It also supports young people facing challenges across the UK. To help the charity, she took part in a duathlon in 2014. This was one of many fundraising events she joined.

Life After Athletics Career

Since 2004, Kelly Holmes has run "On Camp with Kelly" athletics camps. These camps train young athletes.

In 2005, she won the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportswoman of the Year. In the same year, she named a P&O Cruise ship called MS Arcadia. On 21 August, she ran her last race in the UK. This was the 800 metre race at a meeting in Sheffield. She had an Achilles tendon injury, so she finished the race in eighth place. She completed a lap of honour on a buggy.

On 6 December 2005, Kelly Holmes announced she was retiring from athletics. She said she had thought about her future after a friend passed away. She also mentioned that she no longer felt motivated to continue competing.

In May 2009, Kelly Holmes became the president of Commonwealth Games England. She took over from Sir Chris Chataway. The chairman of the organization said she was an "outstanding athlete" and an "inspirational figure."

Kelly Holmes is known for speaking out on health topics. She often talks about mental health and menopause.

Television and Radio Appearances

In November 2010, Kelly Holmes was on the ITV game show The Cube. In October 2011, she appeared on the Dubai One show Studio One. She talked about her life and career after athletics.

In 2013, Kelly became the face of MoneyForce. This program helps provide money advice to the UK armed forces. In early 2015, she was a contestant on the ITV series Bear Grylls: Mission Survive. She was the runner-up after a 12-day survival mission.

In 2017, Kelly Holmes presented an episode of the BBC One series Women at War: 100 Years of Service. In December 2017, she spoke about her mental health challenges from 2003. This was on an episode of All in the Mind on BBC Radio 4. In 2018, she was a judge for the program's awards.

Since September 2022, Kelly Holmes has been a regular panelist on the ITV talk show Loose Women.

Cafe 1809 and The 1809 Hub

In 2014, Kelly Holmes opened a cafe and community hub in Hildenborough. It was called Cafe 1809, named after her 2004 Olympics bib number. She opened another branch of the cafe in Gravesend in 2017, but it closed after a few months.

In October 2018, Kelly announced that the Hildenborough cafe would close. It later reopened as The 1809 Hub. This new space is used for events, pop-ups, and community gatherings.

Artistic Recognition

In 2012, Kelly Holmes was one of five Olympians chosen for a series of body-casting artworks. These were created by artist Louise Giblin. The artworks were shown in London. Copies were sold to help the charity Headfirst.

In 2017, a statue of Kelly Holmes was put up in Tonbridge. The sculptor was Guy Portelli.

Images for kids

• 

  Holmes at the 2004 Summer Olympics

• 

  Kelly Holmes on parade after her Olympic wins.

See also

In Spanish: Kelly Holmes para niños