Karen Holloway - About Me

I was born the youngest daughter to Norm and Betty Connolly in Loretteville, Quebec, Canada.  My father was in the Canadian Army, so my family moved every three to four years, quite often relocating out of the country. 

I began competitive swimming in Ottawa, Canada with the Gloucester Ottawa Kingfish (GO) when I was eleven.  My best events were the 50 and 100 freestyle.  I qualified for Canadian Nationals in both.  Going into the tenth grade my father was transferred to Hampton, Virginia as Canadian Liaison Officer to TRADOC Headquarters at Fort Monroe.  I began swimming for Old Dominion Aquatic Club (ODAC) in Norfolk, which was coached by Bill Peak.  He had me specialize in the 200 Fly and the 400 IM. 

Upon my graduation from High School my parents were transferred to Germany.  However, I decided to stay in the United States and accepted a swimming scholarship to Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk, Virginia.  I had been battling shoulder problems most of my swimming career so, while at ODU, I had arthroscopic surgery on my right shoulder.  Needless to say I swam better than ever and won conference in the 200 fly.  After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Physical Education and Health I moved to Richmond, Virginia to be with my, now, husband, Chris Holloway.  I did a lot of swim team coaching and became the Head Coach of a small team, Burkwood Aquatic Club (BAC).  I coached BAC for four years.  Although I loved coaching, I had started to develop a passion for triathlons.  My friends talked me into doing a couple where I had some success.  My competitive nature being what it is, and with the support of my husband, I decided to take my training to a new level.  I gave up year round swim team coaching only because it required me to work most mornings, evenings and weekends - which was not conducive to training.

In 2000 I attempted my first Ironman in Florida.  I was the sixth woman to finish overall.  This qualified me for Hawaii 2001.  In Hawaii, my second Ironman, I placed third in my age group. 

Since 2002 I have been racing professionally.  My best performance to date was when I won Ironman Canada in 2005.  It was such a special win since I am Canadian, no one expected me to win and my dad was able to be there to witness my victory. 

In 2007 I was training for the Hawaii Ironman and got a stress fracture in my foot.  It was then that I decided to make a BIG change in my life.  I decided to concentrate more on the coaching side of triathlons and start a family.  My daughter, Skylar was born August 16th 2008.   For the moment I have put my racing career on the backburner and I am now putting my time and energy into being as good a coach as possible. 

I am still having a blast and learning a lot about this sport and myself.  Triathlon continues to enrich my life and I look forward to continuing my journey.