Kelly started running competitively in high school and then with the McGill University Varsity cross-country and track teams. Highlights of her scholastic running career include winning the provincial indoor 3000M and qualifying for nationals 4 years in a row.  After completing her doctorate, Kelly relocated to Maryland from California in 2011 to join the faculty at the University of Maryland School of Medicine.  

Not long after her arrival in Maryland, Kelly joined the Striders Racing team and began to crush the competition as one of, if not the region’s premier Masters Woman runner.  A few numbers provide evidence of her dominance.  In the eight years from 2011 through 2017 Kelly ran 45 races as a member of the Racing Team.  Even as a Master, 18 times out of those 45 she finished top 3 in the Open Division (with 5 outright wins), 16 more times she was the top Master and 8 other times she was top 3 in her Age Group.  And the only three times she didn’t finish at least that high were the Cherry Blossom Ten Miler in 2012 where she was 5^th in her AG, the Chicago Marathon in 2014 where she was 9^th in her AG with a time of 3:02:44, and Boston in 2016 where she ran the second half with an injury.  

Kelly credited the Tuesday/Thursday morning group runs and Bobby Gessler’s grueling workouts for bringing out her competitive edge.  But despite being a hard-nosed competitor, she was also the most kind and supportive teammate you’d want to have. 

By 2017 Kelly held every Racing Team record for Masters Women from the 5K up through the marathon with these impressive times:  

Kelly’s excellence is further documented by the fact she was awarded Striders Runner of the Year in 2013 and Masters Runner of the Year in 2012, 2014, and 2016.