Holmes
starting training for athletics aged 12, joining Tonbridge Athletics
Club, where she was coached by David Arnold and went on to win the
national schools' 1500 metres in her second season. Her hero was
British middle distance runner Sebastian Coe, and she was inspired
by Coe's succesful 1984 Summer Olympics defence of his 1,500m crown.
However, Holmes later turned her back on athletics, joining the
British Army at the age of 18, having left school two years earlier,
working initially as a recreation assistant and later as a nursing
assistant. In the army she was initially a lorry driver in the Women's
Royal Auxiliary Corp, later transferring to the Adjutants General
Corps as a physical trainer, reaching the rank of sergeant. She
also became British Army judo champion, and in army athletics events
once competed in the men's 800 metres at a meeting, as it was considered
that for her to run in the women's event would be too embarrassing
for the other competitors. At another event, she competed in and
won an 800 metres, a 3000 metres and a relay race all in a single
day.
Holmes watched the 1992 Summer Olympics on television, and seeing
Lisa York in the heats of the 3,000 metres, an athlete whom she
had competed against, and beaten, decided to return to athletics.
For several years she combined both athletics and her employment
in the army until increased funding allowed her to become a full-time
athlete in 1997.
Initial athletics career
She won the national 800m in 1993 and the 1500m in 1994. She won
gold at the 1994 Commonwealth Games in the 1500 metres, competing
for England. (Unlike in other international competitions such as
the Olympics and World & European Championships, in the Commonwealth
Games the British countries compete separately).
Holmes has suffered setbacks caused by injuries. In 1996, she suffered
a stress fracture and finished fourth in the Atlanta Olympics. In
1997, a slightly torn calf in training resulted in a ruptured achilles
tendon which ended her in Athens World Championships in the heats,
hobbling home half a lap behind her competitors.
Going into the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia on the
back of just six weeks' intensive training because of a virus, she
finished third in the 800m. The winner of that race, Maria Mutola
of Mozambique would later become her training partner, as Holmes
moved to Africa to train and live with her.
2004
Summer Olympics
2004
saw Holmes arrive at a major competition, the Athens Olympics, with
no injury worries for just about the first time in her career. She
had originally planned to compete in just the 1,500 m but a victory
over Jolanda Ceplak before the games had many saying she should
take her chance in the 800 as well. Holmes did not announce her
decision to race in both events until five days before the 800m
finals.
Along with three time world champion Mutola and Ceplak, Holmes was
considered one of the favourites for the gold medal in the 800m.
In the final, Holmes ran a well-paced race, ignoring a fast start
by a number of the other competitors, and moved into the lead ahead
of Mutola on the final bend, taking the gold on the line ahead of
Hasna Benhassi and Ceplak, with Mutola in fourth. Holmes became
the seventh British woman to win an athletics gold, and the second
after Ann Packer in 1964 to win the 800 metres.
Clearly in form, Holmes now became favourite for the her preferred
event, the 1,500 metres on the 28 August. Her most difficult task
now was maintaining her focus — she later revealed how after waking
each morning she had put her medal on and cried.
Again running from the rear of the field, she took the lead in the
final straight, holding off World Champion Tatyana Tomashova of
Russia. She thus became only the third woman in history to do the
800 and 1500m double, after Tatyana Kazankina of the Soviet Union
in 1976 and Svetlana Masterkova of Russia in 1996, the first British
woman to win two olympic gold medals, and the country's first double
gold medallist at the same games since Albert Hill in 1920. Her
time of 3 minutes 57.90 seconds in the 1500m final also set a new
British record for the distance.
Subsequently, Holmes was given the honour of carrying the British
flag at the closing ceremony of the games, on August 29, the day
after her second victory. A home-coming parade was held in her honour
through the streets of Hildenborough and Tonbridge on September
1, which was attended by approximately 40,000 people - more than
double the size of crowds at the parade through London for all the
Olympic medallists. She is also odds-on favourite to take the BBC
Sports Personality of the Year in December 2004.
Achievements
1994
Commonwealth Games - Victoria, British Columbia, Canada.
1500 m gold medal
European Championships - Helsinki, Finland.
1500 m silver medal
IAAF World Cup - London, England.
1500 m bronze medal
European Cup - Birmingham, England.
800 m silver medal
1995
World Championships - Gothenburg, Sweden.
800 m bronze medal
European Cup - Villeneuve d'Ascq, France.
800 m gold medal
1996
European Cup - Madrid, Spain.
800 m silver medal
1997
European Cup - Munich, Germany.
1500 m gold medal
1998
Commonwealth Games - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
1500 m silver medal
2000
Summer Olympics - Sydney, Australia.
800m bronze medal
2002
European Championships - Munich, Germany.
800 m bronze medal
Commonwealth Games - Manchester, England.
1500m gold medal
2003
World Championships - Paris, France.
800 m silver medal
World Indoor Championships - Birmingham, England.
1500 m silver medal
2004
Summer Olympics - Athens, Greece.
800 m gold medal
1500 m gold medal
In addition to these achievements, Holmes has also won 12 national
titles.
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