April Holmes
What do you call a woman who owns the world record (women's T44 classification) in the 100m, 200m and 400m dashes and runs her own non-profit organization for people with physical disabilities? U.S. Paralympian April Holmes.
Since her career in Paralympic track & field began in 2002, Holmes has continued to succeed, improving each and every step of the way.
Holmes is now the world record holder in her class (T44) in the 100, 200 and 400m, and just returned from Beijing where she courageously rebounded from a bad fall in the 200m to win her second straight Paralympic gold medal in the 100m.
Her running career didn't begin with U.S. Paralympics; a Division I track & field athlete at Norfolk State University, Holmes was crowned an All-American in the 400 and 4x400m relay.
In 2001, Holmes was involved in a train accident that resulted in the loss of her left leg below the knee. While she lay in her hospital bed, a doctor presented her with magazines about the Paralympic Games and a new goal was born.
Off the track, Holmes runs the April Holmes Foundation, a non-profit organization tasked with assisting people with physical and developmental disabilities in everyday life.
Knowing Holmes' strength, stamina and resilience, she is surely an athlete whose name you'll continue to hear now through 2008 and beyond.
Major Achievements:
- 2008: Gold medal, 100m - Paralympic Games, Beijing, China
- 2008: Three gold medals, 100m, 200m and Long Jump - U.S. Paralympic Track & Field Championships, Phoenix, Ariz.
- 2008: World record 200m T44/F44 (27.10)- Boiling Point Track Classic
- 2007: Three gold medals, 100m, 200m and Long Jump - U.S. Paralympic Track & Field National Championships, Marietta, Ga.
- 2006: Two gold medals, 100m, 200m; Bronze medal, Long Jump - 2006 IPC Athletics World Championships, Assen, The Netherlands
- 2006: Two world records, 100m (12.98), 200m (27.10) - U.S. Paralympics Track & Field National Championships, Atlanta, Ga.
- 2006: Gold medal, long jump - Visa Paralympic World Cup, Manchester, United Kingdom
- 2006: Two gold medals, 100m, 400m - Paralympic Revival, Duderstadt, Germany
- 2006: Bronze medal, long jump - IPC Athletics World Indoor Championships, Sweden
- 2006: Two gold medals, 100m, 200m - German National Championships, Leverkusen, Germany
- 2004: Two world records, 100m, 200m; Bronze medal, long jump - Paralympic Games, Athens, Greece
- 2003: Gold medal, 100m; Silver medal, 200m - Rocky Mountain State Games, Colorado Springs, Colo.
- 2003: Gold medal, 200m - German National Championships, Leverkusen, Germany
- 2002: Silver medal, 100m; Fourth place, 200m - IPC Athletics World Championships, Lille, France
- 2002: First place, 100m - DS/USA's International Challenge, Orlando, Fla.
