Dame Kelly Holmes Gets Honorary Degree And Gives Inspirational Speech
Double Olympic gold medallist Dame Kelly Holmes told new graduates that life is a race as she was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science (HonDSc) by the University of Greenwich today.
“You have already achieved a great deal and now you have reached the final: the biggest challenge is still to come as you step out into the world. What you achieve now is up to you.”
Dame Kelly told the graduates to have a goal and believe in their ability: “Tell yourself: ‘I know what I want to do with my life and I’m going to go all the way.” She said that she learned from her mistakes and never stopped learning: “Right up to the point that I walked into the Olympic stadium, I changed the way I ran. You change tactics in order to get better.”
Giving the traditional eulogy of praise, the university’s Professor Pat Harvey said Dame Kelly had translated her dreams into becoming “a supreme master and inspirational sport icon of our time”.
The graduates erupted in cheers as Professor Harvey described her as “the best female middle distance runner Great Britain has ever produced”. She went on to describe Dame Kelly as “a gifted and inspirational teacher, who takes great pleasure in helping others to achieve goals”, referring amongst other achievements to her days as a Physical Training Instructor in the army.
Greenwich has many strengths in teaching and research in the field of sports science, with well-equipped facilities in Medway, Kent which are being used to help train the next generation of Olympic hopefuls in many sports. The university also has a long track record of training PE teachers, with expertise going back more than a century.
The Greenwich campus, from which Kelly graduated, is to be part of one of
the official Olympic sites, Riverside Zone, supporting the Modern Pentathlon and the Equestrian events.
To find out more about studying sports science, or to become a PE teacher, at the University of Greenwich call 0800 005 006 or e-mail: courseinfo@greenwich.ac.uk or see www.greenwich.ac.uk
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Notes for Editors:
Jpeg pictures of Dame Kelly Holmes receiving her award and standing in the historic grounds of the Greenwich campus are available on request from the Press Office.
Dame Kelly Holmes: history and achievements:
Dame Kelly became the first athlete ever to contest both the 800 metres and 1500 metres finals at three successive Olympic Games, and won Gold in the 2004 Olympic Games 800 metres and 1500 metres races. She is one of only 3 women ever to achieve the 800 metres and 1500 metres double, and the country’s first double gold medallist at the same games since 1920. In recognition of her achievements, the British public voted Dame Kelly as BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2004, and in 2005 she was made Dame Commander of the British Empire by the State. She also won the Laureus World Sportswoman of the Year award, the most prestigious award there is for a sportswoman. She is Patron of NSPCC and Sportability and in 2004 launched the 2004 Royal British Legion Poppy Appeal. As a London 2012 Ambassador she was among those who led celebrations in Trafalgar Square after the success of the Olympics bid. Kelly Holmes was born in Pembury, West Kent in 1970. Her abilities as an athlete were spotted at an early age. At 12 years she joined Tonbridge Athletic Club and went on to win the national schools’ 1500m in only her second season.
The degree ceremony
Dame Kelly received her honorary degree alongside students graduating from the School of Humanities on Monday, October 23 in the Chapel of St Peter and St Paul at the Old Royal Naval College on the Greenwich campus. She was awarded the doctorate by the Rt Hon the Lord Holme of Cheltenham CBE, Chancellor of the University of Greenwich. Dame Kelly wore a gown of blue and gold damask silk and a Tudor-style academic bonnet in gold silk. Honorary degrees are awarded to individuals of distinction who have made a major contribution to the work of the university, or who have earned prominence for activities associated more widely with education, business, culture, creative work and public service.
For further information, contact:
Hester Brown
Public Relations Unit
University of Greenwich
Tel: 020 8331 7663
hester.brown@gre.ac.uk