Biography
the story so far...

The early years
It was thanks to Mrs. Cooper, a primary school teacher at Nether Green, that I got the running bug. After finishing 18th in my first cross country race in Y5, I gradually improved to a ‘PB’ of 2nd in Y6.

With no structured club at Tapton Secondary School, following some encouragement from teachers, I took the initiative and joined my local athletics club Hallamshire Harriers Sheffield. I im proved steadily progressing from Sheffield to South Yorkshire and to – what I thought at the time would be the pinnacle of my career - Yorkshire titles over XC, 800m and 1500m.

1997- 1999: An England call-up!
My first ‘big breakthrough’, however, came in 1997 where, after only qualifying for the first time, at the English Schools I finished 2nd despite being slowest on paper and as a result gained my first England vest.

The excitement and disbelief still sends a shiver down my spine! After stalling somewhat the following year, as often happens, I switched to 800m in 1999 with immediate good effect, reducing my PB by 7 seconds to 2:07.2 which I set in taking my first AAAs title on my 17th birthday!

 
2000- 2001: International Mishaps
International success, however, had to wait a while as I was tripped in the final of the European Youth Olympic Days in Edjsberg (1999); got food poisoning at the World Juniors in Chile (2000) and finished in the dreaded 4th position at the European Juniors in Grossetto (2001). By this point I thought that me and medals just weren’t meant to be.
 

2002- 2004: Golden ups & Commonwealth downs
Shortly after changing coaches to the national junior middle distance coach at the time, Gordon Surtees, I made a big step forward in 2002 reducing my PB by nearly 3 seconds running 2:02.4 to qualify for the Commonwealth Games in Manchester. No matter what happens now in the rest of my career, I can say with great pride that I have had the satisfaction of competing in front of a home crowd in a stadium that was packed to the rafters. And what a crowd! I’ve yet to encounter a roar to rival it in any of my races since and it’s just incredible to think that they were roaring for me!

But it is with mixed emotions that I look back on the championships as I performed abysmally to get knocked out in the heats. I learnt an awful lot from the experience, but it still sits with me as my greatest disappointment. However, it only served to fuel what was to come.

The following year I took a year out of my Sport and Exercise Science studies at Loughborough University to study Spanish in America on an athletics scholarship at Butler University, Indianapolis. I really enjoyed the feeling of being part of the team out there, something that is often lacking in this individual sport. I also benefited greatly from the competitive opportunities presented to me, and was amazed at the quality and depth that exists in the NCAA. That season saw me finish 3rd in the NCAA Championships in a PB (or should that be ‘PR’?!) of 2:01.76, and then return home to somewhat unexpectedly win the European Under 23 800m title!
 
2005: Injury and frustration
The next two seasons were a frustrating mix of injury and lack of opportunity, together with academic pressures as I was finishing up my Loughborough degree in 2005, which saw only small improvements and a dip in confidence. And all the while the women’s 800m in the UK seemed to grow stronger with every race.

2006: All that glitters... is bronze!
By May of 2006, coming into the new season there was a feeling that this year would be make or break for me, so it was time to start taking some positive action. I changed coaches to Dave Turnbull, a local coach at Stockport Harriers (where I am now living), with a great group of talented young athletes. This has enabled me to train with a group of lads, as opposed to by myself as had been mainly the case in the previous 4 years in the phone-athlete relationship I had shared with Gordon. I also enlisted the help of Nic Bideau, a successful coach and race agent to get me into more competitive races on the European circuit that – despite my own best efforts – had so far eluded me. He also proved to be a great motivator and tactician offering me sound advice before races. This, together with Dave’s training and sense of humour, shaped me into a much happier and more confident athlete; the results of which were immediate.

I started the season with a victory in Hengelo, followed this up with 2nd in the Oslo Golden League and then smashed the 2 minute barrier for the first time in front of a home crowd at Gateshead, running my PB of 1:58.20 to take me 3rd on the UK all time list! A 7 second 1500m PB of 4:06 followed shortly after and then a few weeks later I captured my first senior AAA title.

The best, however, was yet to come as I went on to claim bronze at the European Championships in Gothenburg. Berths at the World Athletics Final and World Cup followed with 5th and 4th place finishes respectively. The season was then perfectly capped off by a victory in the Great North Mile. I then received the honour of being voted ‘British Female Athlete of the Year’. Surreal.

The rollercoaster contines...
Unfortunately 2007 proved to be a tough year for me as i battled a number of injuries that prevented me from building on my success of the previous year. I have taken much heart from it though and learnt many lessons. As they say 'Storms make oaks take deeper root'. Hopefully this will be evident in 2008...

Thanks for taking an interest in my career so far. I hope you've enjoyed reading the above and that it has inspired you to pursue your own goals.