Some of the most accomplished people are so very humble … One such person I met last night – Dame Kelly Holmes.
Kelly specialised in the 800 metres and 1500 metres events and won a Gold medal for the UK for both distances at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. She set British records in numerous events and still holds the records over the 600, 800, 1000 and 1500 metres.
An army trainer for fitness prior to winning the Olympics, Kelly says that the key to her accomplishments has been hard work, determination and surrounding herself with positive people.
Her journey wasn’t quite that simple. She turned to the professional atheletics circuit in the early 1990’s but it wasn’t until 1994 that she won a Silver medal at the Commonwealth Games in 1994. But Kelly had her eyes set on winning a Gold medal at the Olympics. She trained hard and along the way suffered from various injuries in 19995- 1996. She did not succeed in winning a medal at her first Olympics in Atlanta in 1996. Disheartened, but not discouraged, Kelly continued training and finally won Bronze in the 800metre race at the Sydney Olympics in 2000; her first Olympic medal. Although proud about winning her country a Bronze medal, she still continued to train and strive to win Gold.
In 2004, she turned 34 (most in her field set to retire by the time they are 30!) and was ready to represent the UK at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens. This was her year. This was her time. She won a double Gold medal – finishing first in the 800m and 1500m and becoming a true – Olympic Champion.
There is a lot to learn from Kelly about her hard work, determination, goal setting and perseverance. She credits a lot of her success to surrounding herself amoungst positive people.
For her achievements, she won numerous awards and was appointed Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in 2005. Since then she set up a charity, ‘DKH Legacy Trust’, that helps young lives get on track … a socio-economic challenge that UK is currently facing. I was really inspired by meeting her last night along with the wonderful team that surrounds her.
I support women lead businesses, as although it is mostly a level-playing-field here in the UK (more so than other parts of the world), women still take a back seat when it comes to leadership and commerce. Kelly, a Key Person of Influence in her field is on a continuing path to make a difference..
I look forward to working closely with Kelly to support her vision of empowering youth and leading through example. More exciting times to come..
Darshana