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Ellie Downie

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Elissa Rebecca "Ellie" Downie MBE (born 20 July 1999[1]) is a retired artistic gymnast who has represented Great Britain. She is the all-around 2017 European gymnastics champion, the first gymnast to win a major all-around title for Great Britain.[a]

Ellie Downie
MBE
Downie at the 2015 European Championships in Montpellier, France.
Personal information
Full nameElissa Rebecca Downie
Country represented Great Britain
 England
Born (1999-07-20) 20 July 1999 (age 25)
Nottingham, Nottinghamshire, England
HometownNottingham, United Kingdom
Height157 cm (5 ft 2 in)
DisciplineWomen's artistic gymnastics
LevelSenior international elite
Years on national team2012–2023 (GBR)
ClubNotts Gymnastics Club
Head coach(es)Jo Miller
Music2014: "Señorita" by Bond
2015: "Why Don't You" by Gramophonedzie
2016: "Skeletons" by Drehz
2017: "Boneless" by Steve Aoki
Retired23 January 2023
Medal record
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
World Championships 0 0 2
European Championships 1 6 3
Total 1 6 5
Representing  Great Britain
World Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Glasgow Team
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Stuttgart Vault
European Championships
Gold medal – first place 2017 Cluj-Napoca All-Around
Silver medal – second place 2016 Bern Team
Silver medal – second place 2016 Bern Vault
Silver medal – second place 2016 Bern Floor Exercise
Silver medal – second place 2017 Cluj-Napoca Vault
Silver medal – second place 2017 Cluj-Napoca Floor Exercise
Silver medal – second place 2019 Szczecin All-Around
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Montpellier All-Around
Bronze medal – third place 2017 Cluj-Napoca Uneven Bars
Bronze medal – third place 2019 Szczecin Vault
Youth Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 2014 Nanjing Vault
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Nanjing All-Around
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Nanjing Balance Beam
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Nanjing Floor Exercise
FIG World Cup
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
World Challenge Cup 4 0 0

The younger sister of triple European champion Becky Downie, Downie first came to prominence as an outstanding junior gymnast at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics,[2] winning four medals. At the age of 15, she became the first British woman to win an individual all-around medal at the European Artistic Gymnastics Championships, with a bronze in 2015.[3] Later that year, she was part of the team that won Britain's first global team medal, a bronze, at the 2015 World Artistic Gymnastics Championships. At the 2017 European Championships, she made history again by becoming the first British gymnast to win the all-around at a major international competition.[4]

On 23 January 2023, Downie announced her retirement from the sport.[5]

Junior career

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Downie competed at the 2014 European Championships in Sofia, Bulgaria, and won a gold medal on vault, a silver medal with the British team and a bronze medal in the all-around. Based on this performance, she was selected to compete at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics in Nanjing, China. There, she earned four medals: a silver on vault behind Wang Yan and bronzes in the all-around, balance beam and floor exercise.

Senior career

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2015

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Downie made her senior debut at the 2015 British Championships. She won silver on vault and uneven bars and bronze in the all-around competition, and was named to the British team for the 2015 European Championships along with her sister, Becky Downie.

She performed well in qualifications at the European Championships, qualifying for the individual all-around, vault and uneven bars finals.[6] On 17 April, she competed in the all-around final and placed third, behind Giulia Steingruber of Switzerland and Maria Kharenkova of Russia, with a score of 56.623, winning the first ever individual all-around medal for a British female gymnast at the European Championships.[3]

Downie was the Sky Sports Sportswoman of the Month for April 2015.[7] On 20 December, she was named the BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year.[8][9]

2016

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In May 2016, Downie won all four individual event titles at the FIG World Cup event in Osijek, Croatia,[10] becoming the first gymnast to accomplish this feat at a World Cup competition since Ludmilla Tourischeva in 1975.[11] The following month, at the 2016 European Championships in Bern, Switzerland, she won silver medals with the team and on vault and floor exercise.[12][13]

In July, she was named to the British team for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, along with Becky Downie, Claudia Fragapane, Ruby Harrold and Amy Tinkler.[14]

Olympic Games

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In qualifications at the Olympics, Downie landed on her head during a tumbling pass on floor and was unable to finish her routine.[15][16] However, she returned in the next rotation, performing two vaults, and qualified to the all-around final in 20th place.[17] She improved on that performance in the final, finishing 13th,[18] and the British women finished fifth in the team competition.[19]

2017

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In April Downie represented Great Britain at the European Championships in Cluj-Napoca, Romania, where she made history by qualifying for all five individual finals.[20] The next day, she became the first British gymnast to win the all-around title at a major international competition, beating Hungary's Zsófia Kovács and France's Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos.[4] She also won silver medals on vault and floor exercise, and won the bronze medal on the uneven bars.[21] At the beginning of August she underwent surgery on her ankle due to an injury she had dealt with at both the British Championships and European Championships that year. Due to the surgery Downie was unable to compete at the 2017 World Championships.

2018

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While Downie had intended to compete at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, her ankle was still causing her issues despite the surgery she had undergone previously and she did not compete for a majority of the year.[22]

On 27 September Downie was named to the team to compete at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar alongside Becky Downie, Alice Kinsella, Georgia-Mae Fenton, and Kelly Simm.[23] The team finished ninth in qualifications and did not advance to the team final. Individually Downie qualified to the all-around final where she finished 11th.[24]

2019

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Downie was selected to compete at the 2019 European Championships alongside Amelie Morgan, Alice Kinsella, and Kelly Simm.[25] She competed at the British Championships where she placed first in the all-around, on vault, and on floor exercise.[26] She later competed at the Birmingham World Cup where she placed seventh after falling off the balance beam and uneven bars.[27] At the European Championships Downie qualified to the all-around final in fourth place and to the vault final in first.[28] In the all-around final Downie finished second behind Mélanie de Jesus dos Santos of France.[29] She won bronze in the vault final behind 2015 vault champion Maria Paseka and 2017 vault champion Coline Devillard.[30]

In September Downie was named to the team to compete at the 2019 World Championships in Stuttgart alongside Alice Kinsella, Becky Downie, Taeja James, and Georgia-Mae Fenton.[31] During qualifications Downie helped Great Britain place seventh, earning a spot in the team final and qualifying a team for Great Britain to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Individually Downie qualified for the vault final.[32] During the team final she contributed scores on vault and uneven bars towards Great Britain's sixth place finish.[33] In the vault final Downie performed a Double-Twisting Yurchenko and a Cheng, earning an average score of 14.816 and winning the bronze medal behind Americans Simone Biles and Jade Carey. This was Downie's first individual World Championships medal. Later that day Downie's sister Becky won her first individual World Championships medal, a silver medal on the uneven bars.[34]

2020

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In early February it was announced that Downie was selected to represent Great Britain at the Birmingham World Cup taking place in late March.[35] However the Birmingham World Cup was later canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.[36]

2021

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In May, British Gymnastics announced that Downie would be taking some time away from gymnastics to be with her family following the sudden death of her 24-year-old brother Joshua[37] on the eve of the final Olympic trial,[38] thus ending her Tokyo 2020 Olympic bid.

Controversy

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In 2021, both of the Downie sisters spoke out concerning the pressures placed onto competitiors, including over-training when injured and weight-shaming.[39][40][41] In 2023 interviews, Ellie stated she had quit to focus on her "mental health and happiness", and also to coach junior athletes.[42]

Personal life

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Ellie is the sister of 2008 and 2016 Olympian Becky Downie.[43] She attended the Rushcliffe School in Nottingham until the summer of 2015.[44]

Honours

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In April 2022, she and sister Becky received honorary degrees in sport from Nottingham Trent University.[45]

Ellie and Becky Downie were both appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2024 New Year Honours for services to gymnasts and the sport of gymnastics,[46] which they received together from Princess Anne at Windsor Castle in early March.[47]

Competitive history

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Year Event Team AA VT UB BB FX
Junior
2012 British Team Championships   4 6 4 15 5
British Espoir Championships       18  
UK School Games            
2013 WOGA Classic    
Junior British Championships        
British Team Championships 4
European Youth Olympic Festival   4   7
Élite Gym Massilia   12   4  
Gymnasiade   6 4   6
2014 English Championships 4   7  
Munich Friendly   4
European Championships       5
Youth Olympic Games        
Senior
2015 English Championships 9   6
British Championships       6
European Championships   5 4
GBR-NED International Friendly    
World Championships   4 6
2016 British Championships     4 4
Osijek Challenge Cup        
European Championships      
Olympic Games 5 13
2017 British Championships       WD WD
European Championships       4  
2018
World Championships R1 11
2019 British Championships     7  
Birmingham World Cup 7
European Championships    
World Championships 6  

Notes

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  1. ^ Claudia Fragapane won the All-around competition in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, but representing England.

References

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  1. ^ "Ellie Downie". teamgb.com.
  2. ^ Amanda Turner. "Roster Released For Youth Olympic Games". International Gymnast. Archived from the original on 10 December 2019. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  3. ^ a b "Ellie Downie takes historic bronze". British Gymnastics. 17 April 2015. Archived from the original on 6 August 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  4. ^ a b McDaid, David (21 April 2017). "European Championships: Ellie Downie is first Briton to win all-round gold". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  5. ^ "Ellie Downie announces her retirement to 'prioritise mental health and happiness'". BBC Sport. 23 January 2023.
  6. ^ McDaid, David (15 April 2015). "European Gymnastics: Fragapane and Downie both make finals". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  7. ^ "Gymnast Ellie Downie named April's Sportswoman of the Month". Sky Sports. 12 May 2015. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  8. ^ "Young Sports Personality 2016: Ellie Downie Q&A". BBC News. 29 November 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  9. ^ "Ellie Downie wins BBC Young Sports Personality of the Year award". British Gymnastics. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  10. ^ Turner, Amanda (1 May 2016). "Downie Dominates Osijek with Full Sweep". International Gymnast. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  11. ^ "Ellie Downie completes rare golden sweep at Osijek World Cup". Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique. 2 May 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  12. ^ McDaid, David (5 June 2016). "European Championships: Becky & Ellie Downie win gold & silver". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  13. ^ Corkery, Claire (5 June 2016). "Downie sisters win gold and silver at European Championships in Switzerland". Sky Sports. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  14. ^ "Team GB's 2016 Olympic gymnasts announced". British Gymnastics. 12 July 2016. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  15. ^ Ingle, Sean (7 August 2016). "Ellie Downie gets back off the mat to help GB into all-round gymnastics final". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  16. ^ "Rio 2016 Olympics: Ellie Downie's recovery from injury". BBC Sport. 7 August 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  17. ^ Howard, Tori (8 August 2016). "Women's Finalists at the 2016 Rio Olympics". FloGymnastics. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  18. ^ "13th place for Ellie Downie in women's Olympic all-around final". British Gymnastics. 11 August 2016. Archived from the original on 24 August 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  19. ^ "Fifth place finish for GB women's gymnastics team in Rio". British Gymnastics. 9 August 2016. Archived from the original on 25 August 2016. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  20. ^ "Britain's Ellie Downie qualifies for all-around and all apparatus finals in Cluj". Halesowen News. 20 April 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  21. ^ McDaid, David (23 April 2017). "European Championships: Ellie Downie wins silver on the floor". BBC Sport. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  22. ^ "Ellie Downie: 'My foot is very, very sensitive but I'm happy to be back'". The Guardian. 21 October 2018.
  23. ^ "GBR women's team confirmed for World Championship action". British Gymnastics. 27 September 2018. Archived from the original on 27 September 2018. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  24. ^ "Ellie Downie 11th and Kelly Simm 19th in world all-around final". British Gymnastics. 1 November 2018.
  25. ^ "British team for 2019 European Championships announced". British Gymnastics. 11 March 2019. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  26. ^ "Gymnastics British Championships 2019". British Gymnastics.
  27. ^ "2019 Birmingham World Cup Live Blog". The Gymternet. 23 March 2019.
  28. ^ "British women shine in European Championship qualifying". British Gymnastics. 11 April 2019. Archived from the original on 11 April 2019. Retrieved 11 April 2019.
  29. ^ "Ellie Downie wins superb European silver". British Gymnastics. 12 April 2019. Archived from the original on 9 October 2021. Retrieved 14 April 2019.
  30. ^ "Max wins pommel gold and Ellie adds to European medal haul". British Gymnastics. 13 April 2019.
  31. ^ "Meet the women's 2019 Artistic World Championships team". British Gymnastics. 19 September 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2019.
  32. ^ "Women's team make world finals and qualify place for 2020 Olympic Games". British Gymnastics. 5 October 2019. Archived from the original on 20 September 2021. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  33. ^ "British women's team 6th in world final". British Gymnastics. 8 October 2019. Archived from the original on 22 January 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  34. ^ "World gold, silver and bronze for GB on super Saturday in Stuttgart". British Gymnastics. 12 October 2019. Archived from the original on 12 October 2019. Retrieved 12 October 2019.
  35. ^ "Birmingham World Cup roster bursts with World stars". FIG. 7 February 2020.
  36. ^ "British Gymnastics national events announcement, including FIG World Cup". British Gymnastics. 16 March 2020. Archived from the original on 28 April 2022. Retrieved 16 March 2020.
  37. ^ Reid, Ben (9 May 2021). "Grief-stricken mum's tribute to talented son". NottinghamshireLive. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  38. ^ "Women's Olympic Selection Process Extended". www.british-gymnastics.org. 13 May 2021. Archived from the original on 13 May 2021. Retrieved 13 May 2021.
  39. ^ Becky and Ellie Downie say abuse in GB gymnastics 'completely normalised' The Guardian, 9 July 2020. Retrieved 24 January 2023
  40. ^ GB Gymnastics accused of ‘sinister warning’ after dropping Downie for Olympics The Guardian, 7 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2023
  41. ^ Becky Downie's exclusion from Tokyo 2020 is more than just a story about an athlete not quite making the Olympic team ITV News, 7 June 2021. Retrieved 24 January 2023
  42. ^ Gymnast Ellie Downie retires to prioritise 'mental health and happiness' ITV News, 23 January 2023. Retrieved 24 January 2023
  43. ^ "Family joy as Becky and Ellie Downie savour European Championships gold". Nottingham Post. 18 May 2014. Archived from the original on 21 May 2014. Retrieved 16 April 2015.
  44. ^ "Gymnastic Stars, Ellie and Becky Downie". www.rushcliffe.notts.sch.uk. Archived from the original on 26 April 2017. Retrieved 25 April 2017.
  45. ^ "NTU Honorary Degrees for Local Sports Stars". 28 March 2022.
  46. ^ "No. 64269". The London Gazette (Supplement). 30 December 2023. p. N19.
  47. ^ Gymnasts Becky and Ellie Downie honoured with MBEs at Windsor Castle BBC Sport, 7 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024
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