When she was just seven and three-quarters Olympic athlete and 800 metres star Jenny Meadows knew she wanted to be a runner.
Jenny, who was born in the small village of Abram, Greater Manchester, where she still lives, says: “I attended the local Church of England primary school in Abram. I remember one day somebody from the local Wigan Harriers athletics club was at the school handing out leaflets. I took one home and showed it to my mum, Barbara, who had been a county-level runner at 400 metres.
“She didn’t want me to go as she understood the highs and the lows of sport. But I pestered her about it and she took me down to the track.”
More than 20 years on and Jenny’s life, racing, training, and jetting around the world from Beijing to South Africa, all over the UK and Europe, might seem like that of a high flyer.
But from day one of her athletics career, it has been Jenny’s family that has made things possible, and today her close circle of friends and family helps keep her feet firmly on the ground and gives her the support she needs.
Indeed, when Jenny had two months away, including a long winter training stint in South Africa, the pipes in her new home in Abram froze and burst. The family swung into action, got rid of all the damaged carpets and furniture, replaced everything, and completely redecorated, all without telling her. She had been back in the house for three days after returning before she found out!
Her husband is also her coach, and her brother Andrew is her manager. Her mum, Barbara, a lollipop lady in Abram, is her greatest fan (pictured below with Jenny and the bronze medal she won at the European Athletics Championships in Barcelona).
Barbara still plays a huge part in Jenny’s life; she does Jenny’s washing, cooks her dinner sometimes and ensures she watches Jenny train once a week.
“We’re a very close-knit family, we’re all very proud of Jenny’s achievements and I jump for joy when Jenny wins a medal, whatever colour it is. It’s a dream when she wins gold."
Jenny says: “I’m so grateful to my mum, and to my dad, because neither of them ever learnt how to drive, and they never had a car. It was just something they never wanted to do. Using buses and trains they got me to training sessions and competitions – the logistics must have been a nightmare. They were brilliant.”
Sadly, Jenny’s father Keith passed away in 2008 just five weeks before she competed in her first Olympics.
The route to that first Olympics appearance was mapped out as a teenager, says Jenny: “I don’t want to sound big-headed but I think I always knew I was going to be good. At 14 I won the English Schools championships, and from there it was a natural progression, so I always thought in terms of becoming an international athlete.
“Going to the Olympics in Beijing in 2008 was massive, of course. Everybody was saying to me, 'Well done' and everyone thinks you have made it by getting to the Olympics.
“I got to the semi finals there which at the time I knew was the limit of my ability. But I also knew, looking at the other girls I was competing against, and the girls who went through to the final, that I could be as good as them. That really drove me on. I knew it was achievable, that I had more to come.”
Jenny’s big breakthrough came in 2009 at the Berlin World Championships when she came third, a result that gave her a huge lift in confidence, enabled her to become a full-time athlete, and put her firmly in the headlines.
So how does she handle the pressure from the media and the public that her success has brought?
She says: “The public now expect me to do well and I think you can either worry about the pressure or let it go by. I do tend to think that you can't please everybody. If you do well everybody celebrates and if you don't people will say you have blown it. But even if I do well I know that not everyone is going to like me!
“I have spent so many years in the sport and I have never been in the limelight – until now – and I have always worked as hard as possible.
“I still work just as hard – I can't work any harder – but now I am being recognised and getting some results and it is nice, to be honest.”
Her success in Berlin meant that, more than ever, running, training and competing became her life. Husband Trevor Painter is also her coach, and Jenny says: “There is never time away from athletics. I am either training, competing, or on the massage table or at the physiotherapist’s.
“When I am at home the phone is always going for Trevor with calls from the other athletes he coaches, or I am chatting with him about my next training session.
“Really, there is no time for a social life. I might meet up with a couple of athletes from Wigan Harriers at the weekend and go to see a film, but that is about it.”
Does she ever miss having a “normal” life? Far from it, says Jenny. “I am really excited to get up each day and go training and I do appreciate that I am lucky to have been in sport for as long as I have been and to feel as passionate about it as I do. I am still hungry to perform and of course to do well. And I still love the challenge of athletics.”
Five little-known facts about Jenny
She used to Morris dance!
Her favourite films are Saving Private Ryan and Shawshank Redemption.
She loves a good gossip magazine!
She has OCD – everything must be clean, tidy and in order.
Her husband – and trainer – Trevor bought her an electric guitar for Christmas.