Isis Holt

Isis Holt (born 3 July 2001) is an Australian Paralympic athlete competing in T35 sprint events. She is affected by the condition cerebral palsy. Holt won gold medals in the 100 m and 200 m at the 2015 and 2017 World Para Athletics Championships. At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, she won two silver medals and a bronze medal and 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, two silver medals.^[1][2][3]

Isis Holt

2016 Australian Paralympic team portrait
Personal information
Nationality	Australian
Born	(2001-07-03) 3 July 2001 (age 24) Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Sport
Club	Old Xaverians Athletics Club
Medal record Women's athletics T35 Representing  Australia Paralympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro 100 m T35 2016 Rio de Janeiro 200 m T35 2020 Tokyo 100 m T35 2020 Tokyo 200 m T35 2016 Rio de Janeiro 4×100 m relay T35-38 IPC Athletics World Championships 2015 Doha 100 m T35 2015 Doha 200 m T35 2017 London 100 m T35 2017 London 200 m T35 Commonwealth Games 2018 Gold Coast 100 m T35

Personal life

Holt was born on 3 July 2001 with cerebral palsy, which affects both sides of her body.^[4] She attended Brunswick Secondary College. She previously attended Melbourne Girls Grammar.

Athletics

Holt took up athletics in 2014.^[5][6] At the 2015 IPC Athletics World Championships in Doha in her first major overseas competition, she won gold medals in world record time in two events: Women's 100m T35 (13.63 (w: +2.0) world record) and the Women's 200m T35 (28.57 (w: +1.5 world record).^[6][7] At the IPC Athletics Grand Prix in Canberra on 7 February 2016, she smashed her 200m T35 world record by running 28.38 (w: +0.2).^[8] At the 2016 Australian Athletics Championships in Sydney, she broke world records in winning the 100m and 200m Ambulant events.

At the 2016 Rio Paralympics, she won silver medals in the Women's 100 m T35 and Women's 200 m T25 and a bronze medal in the Women's 4 × 100 m Relay T35-38.^[1]

At the 2017 World Para Athletics Championships in London, she won gold medals in the Women's 100 m T35 and Women's 200 m T35.^[9] In winning the 100 m, she broke the world record with a time of 13.43. This time broke the world record she previously held by 0.14 seconds^[10] By winning the 100 m and 200 m, Holt defended titles won at the 2015 World Championships.^[10] Two weeks prior to leaving for the World Championships, she was hospitalised with tonsillitis.^[11]

After the Rio Paralympics, Holt moved to Queensland to be coached by Paul Pearce.^[12] At the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Gold Coast, Queensland, she won the gold medal in the Women's 100m T35.

At the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics, Holt won the silver medal in the Women's 100 m T35 in a personal best time of 13.13. She also won silver in the Women's 200 m T35, setting a new Oceania record with a run of 27.94.^[13]

World records

Distance	Time	Location	Date
Women's 200m T35	29.49	Brisbane	29 March 2015[14]
Women's 100m T35	13.63 (w: +2.0)	Doha	29 October 2015[6]
Women's 200m T35	28.57 (w: +1.5)	Doha	24 October 2015[7]
Women's 200m T35	28.38 (w: +0.2)	Canberra	7 February 2016[8]
Women's 100m T35	13.57 (w: -0.8)	Sydney	1 April 2016[15]
Women's 200m T35	28.30 (w: +1.1)	Sydney	3 April 2016[16]
Women's 100m T35	13.43 (+0.9)	London	19 July 2017[10]
Women's 100m T35	13.37 (+0.8)	Gold Coast, Queensland	17 February 2018[17]
Women's 100m T35	13.36 (+0.5)	Sydney	17 March 2018[18]

Her philosophy is "My ability is bigger than my disability."^[6] She was coached in Melbourne by Nick Wall for 2016 Rio Paralympics and by Paul Pearce in Brisbane for the 2020 Tokyo Paralympics.^[5]

In November 2022, Holt announced her retirement to pursue a career in psychology.^[19]

Recognition

• 2015 Victorian Junior Athlete of the Year^[20]
• 2015 Athletics Australia Female Para-athlete of the Year^[21]
• 2016 Athletics Australia Female Para-athlete of the Year^[22]
• 2017 Victorian Disability Sport and Recreation Awards – Deakin University Female Sportsperson of the Year^[23]
• 2017 Victorian Institute of Sport 2XU Youth Award^[24]
• 2017 Athletics Australia Female Para-athlete of the Year^[25]