Kelly Gallagher

Kelly Gallagher MBE (born 18 May 1985), is a retired Irish skier and the first athlete from Northern Ireland to compete in the Winter Paralympics. Gallagher won the UK’s first ever Winter Paralympic gold medal during Sochi 2014.

Childhood Kelly was born on 18 May 1985 and was raised in Bangor in the north of County Down. Her father, Patrick Gallagher, was an airline pilot. She is a graduate in mathematics from the University of Bath.

Pre-Paralympics Kelly has oculocutaneous albinism, is visually impaired and competes with a sighted guide. At the 2009 New Zealand Winter Games Gallagher, competing with guide Claire Robb, won gold in her first ever international race, the giant slalom.

She was selected for the British team at the 2010 Winter Paralympics in February 2010. Gallagher is funded by the Sport Northern Ireland Athlete Support Programme and supported by the Sports Institute for Northern Ireland and is also backed by Disability Sports NI.

2010 Paralympics Kelly was one of seven skiers for Great Britain at the 2010 Winter Paralympics and became the first athlete from Northern Ireland to compete in the Winter Paralympics. She finished sixth in the slalom but achieved the British team's highest finish, missing out on a medal by a single place and 3.36 seconds in the giant slalom.

Between Paralympics Downhill final of the 2013 IPC Alpine World Championships at La Molina in Spain. Kelly Gallagher (white tunic) and guide Charlotte Evans (orange tunic) Following the Paralympics Gallagher sought a new sighted guide to work with her through to the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi and selected 19-year-old Charlotte Evans from Medway. Evans had been out of the sport after she snapped a cruciate ligament in 2009 but took up the role having become a qualified coach.

In January 2011 Gallagher became the first British athlete to win a medal at the IPC World Championships. Competing with Evans the pair won the silver medal in the slalom and bronze in the giant slalom at the event held in Sestriere only five weeks after they started working together. The pairing also won a gold medal in slalom at the 2011 Europa Cup Finals.

2014 Paralympics Gallagher won Britain's first ever Winter Paralympic gold on 10 March 2014, during the 2014 Winter Paralympics in Sochi, Russia. She finished first in the visually impaired Super-G competition. The Ski Club of Great Britain awarded her with a Pery Medal along with the other medal winners from the 2014 Olympics and Paralympics.

2017 World Championships and 2018 Paralympics In 2017 Gallagher was selected for the 2017 World Para Alpine Skiing Championships in Tarvisio in Italy. Partnered with Gary Smith, she crashed during training on the championship slopes and injured herself after colliding into the safety netting. She sustained a dislocated elbow and three fractured ribs in the accident and was airlifted to a local hospital. Despite losing time to her injuries Gallagher was still able to secure her place in the Great Britain team for the 2018 Paralympics.