Kelly Sotherton won her first bronze Olympic medal at the 2004 games, followed by another at the 2008 games after the disqualification of two other athletes. She was also part of the bronze medal-winning team in the women’s 4x400m relay at the same games, again finishing in fifth place but upgraded due to subsequent disqualifications.

As the medals racked up, Kelly was increasingly recognised as part of the line of world-class British athletes that included Mary Peters, Denise Lewis, Jessica Ennis-Hill and Katarina Johnson-Thompson.

After experiencing foot and back injuries, Kelly retired from the heptathlon in 2010 and focussed on the 400 metre. Unfortunately, her funding was cut in 2011 so she returned to the first sport. But just a year later, she retired completely after failing to recover sufficiently from back surgery.

Piet.Wijker, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Kelly Sotherton Post Athletics Career

Since retiring, Kelly undertook an accredited journalism course to hone her oft-forthright views, which has led her to be a regular guest on radio and television sporting programmes.

Over the years, Kelly has set herself a variety of sporting challenges; she has run the London Marathon in aid of AgeUK, completed the gruelling nine-day Deloitte ride across Britain race from Lands’ End to John O’Groats, has been a pacemaker for at the Great Birmingham 10km and Great South Run, participated in the Prudential London Triathlon and took part in a marathon row for cancer research.

Kelly Sotherton Performance Coaching

She is now a performance coach and specialises in running, working with the likes of Wasps Rugby, as well as being an IAAF Women’s Committee Member. It was announced in 2020 that she would lead the Athletics Team at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games – her home city.

Determined to make positive change in sport, her resolve led her to create the British Athletics’ Athletes Commission, which provides athletes with independent, confidential support and advice on mediation, integrity and health and wellbeing issues. She spent almost five years as a member of the World Athletics’ Gender Leadership Taskforce creating solutions for gender equality in athletics, and is also a board member at the Sports People Think Tank, where she created opportunities for academics to research sporting issues.

Kelly Sotherton Media & Corporate Work

Kelly has a strong interest in sports governance and has now taken on an advisory role, whilst also concentrating on her burgeoning media career and regular corporate appearances. She has worked with the likes of Johnson and Johnson Visioncare to help raise awareness of the importance that eye health has to performance, as well as partnering with Splenda to develop her own workout program.

A Chat with Kelly Sotherton MBE.

As part of our ‘Chat with…’ series at Great British Speakers, our director Jane Farnham sat down with Kelly to discuss her athletic career, how she coped with competition and how to find resilience and overcome obstacles. Watch the full interview HERE.

SPEAKING TOPICS

– Olympic Games

– Being a Sportsperson

– Women in Sport

– Overcoming Injury and Setbacks

Due to her charismatic and naturally outspoken nature, Kelly is an incredibly insightful, engaging and entertaining speaker for any audience.

Call +44 1753 439 289 or email Great British Speakers now to book Olympic Heptathlete Kelly Sotherton for your corporate event.

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