Paralympic sprinter and Commonwealth Games Gold Medallist Isis Holt is taking a break from the track to focus on finishing year 12.
The 17-year-old athlete, who has cerebral palsy, has been a competitor in both the 100m and 200m T35 events since she was in primary school.
In 2015, she was crowned world champion twice at the IPC World Championships in Doha.
The Melbourne teenager started athletics in year 6 and has since won two silver and one bronze at the Rio Paralympic Games and has become a four-time world champion.
“Every competition over the years has had something unique to it, something to make it memorable,” Holt said.
“[But] the competitions are a very small portion of what being an elite athlete entails.”
It doesn’t come easy for the World Champion, fitting her studies around athletic commitments – 12 hours of training a week, including sessions on the track, Pilates and in the gym.
After winning Gold at the Commonwealth Games this year, Holt felt she needed to take a break and just be a normal teenager.
The extra time means she can pursue other passions, like equestrian.
“I want to allow myself time to really miss the training and competitions that I have grown so used to over the last few years.”
‘’I’m now getting back into a sport I used to adore when I was younger…
“The time I’m taking is here for me to enjoy having a bit more time to try new things and take a bit of a breather,” said Holt.
She hasn’t walked away from the track forever and says Tokyo 2020 Paralympics are still in sight – but for now is enjoying her time away from the strict training regime.
“I am still attending the gym and physio to maintain fitness so that if or when I do return it will be a little easier,” she said.
“It’s now about getting through school and then asking myself what I want to do next.”
(Featured image: Para-athlete Isis Holt is stepping back from the track to focus on life outside athletics. Photo: Miriam Jeske/Heusi Action via Flickr)
