Jessica's parents visited the new Umix Centre in Lowfield near to where Jessica and her sister Carmel were raised. Her mum Alison and Dad Vinnie talk olympics, Don Valley and dogs, with a few nice memories of Jessica's childhood also thrown in.  

Jessica Ennis is a brand ambassador for Santander. 

Ana Botin, Santander UK's chief executive, said: 

‘I am delighted to welcome Jessica to our extraordinary Santander team, to build on the success of our existing partnerships and to form a new alliance for us, in a different sport.’

Jess will become the first female face of the Santander UK brand in its upcoming TV advertising campaign. More info to follow...

There's still time to grab yourself a Jessica Ennis T-shirt for Christmas. Produced by Adidas the T-shirts are on sale for £15, that's a reduction of 25% in the lead up to Christmas. You can order yours, or one for a friend or family member by clicking on the merchandise page on the homepage of the website. Or just click this link.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all! What a fantastic year 2012 was.

Rio De Janeiro, December 13, 2012 - A glittering collection of the world’s greatest Olympic and Paralympic stars have been nominated for the 2013 Laureus World Sports Awards, following a ballot by the world’s media.

The exceptional performances in London just a few months ago that thrilled the sporting world and produced unforgettable gold medal winning moments have produced Nominations in every category. 
Usain Bolt, Jessica Ennis, Missy Franklin, Andy Murray, Michael Phelps, Ye Shiwen, Bradley Wiggins and Serena Williams are among those who received Nominations when the shortlist was announced in Rio de Janeiro today. 
But they will be challenged by some outstanding performances from non-Olympians, particularly charismatic footballer Lionel Messi, nominated for the fourth straight time, and Sebastian Vettel, winner of a third straight Formula One World Championship. 


Olympic gold medal winning heptathlete and Jaguar Academy of Sport Ambassador Jessica Ennis has been named ‘Most Inspirational Sportswoman of the Year’ at the 2012 Jaguar Academy of Sport Awards. The event, hosted by David Walliams and Kirsty Gallacher at The Savoy, celebrated some of the most inspirational British sporting performances over the past year. 

Jessica Ennis said: “I’ve had such a great evening and to win this award is fantastic. A lot of hard work went into winning that gold medal and I hope I have inspired people to not only continue in sport but seek new challenges.”

GOLD, SILVER, AND BRONZE

Athletes in the heptathlon must achieve an Olympic qualifying score and must qualify for their nation’s Olympic team. A maximum of three competitors per country may compete in the heptathlon. Points are awarded to each athlete according to her time or distance, not her placement in the field, according to pre-set formulas.

If there is a tie in points after seven events, the victory goes to the competitor who out-scored her rival in more events. If that tiebreaker results in a draw (3-3 with one tie, for example), the victory goes to the heptathlete who scored the most points in any single event.

The medals in London are a thing of beauty too. Design Week wrote about them: These is the slightly concave background – ‘a bowl similar to the design of an amphitheatre’ according to Locog, a grid of lines to symbolise drawing together and outreach, and the River Thames, a symbol of London and interestingly a ‘fluttering baroque ribbon’ says Locog.

The embossed logo meanwhile is ‘a tough crystalline growth’ or ‘an architectural expression’ Locog says.

The Olympic hopes of Sheffield rest on Jessica's shoulders. 

And now the heptathlete has received even more backing in her bid for sporting glory with the unveiling of a huge banner bearing her image.

The giant 40ft banner is taking pride of place on the front of John Lewis, in Barker’s Pool, as fans in Jess’s home city eagerly await the start of the 2012 Games.

“Jessica was born in Sheffield, so this banner is a fitting way for the community to show their support and wish her the best of luck,” said James Price, the Sheffield store’s managing director.

Sheffield is gearing up to lure thousands of Olympics fans to the lower Don Valley for a week of sport, music and medal winning performances.

A team from Sheffield International Venues (SIV) working with partners including Sheffield City Council and the Sheftival team, has pinpointed the Don Valley cluster of venues, which includes Don Valley Stadium and Bowl, as a base for Sheffield’s Olympic supporters to gather and watch the action.

Sports fans can watch a huge screen for free showing live events and highlights of London 2012 from 6-10pm on July 30 to August 2 and all day from 9am until 10pm on July 3, 4 and 5.

The big screen will show action from the London 2012 Games every evening while the weekend showings coincide with the biggest concentration of medal events over the three week long sports extravaganza.

Saturday and Sunday will include the finals of the swimming, cycling, rowing, high profile athletics events including the 100m men’s final and most importantly could see Sheffield’s very own Jessica Ennis bid for gold in the heptathlon final.

Jessica Ennis plans to clear one last hurdle after London 2012. The Team GB star is among the favourites to get on the podium this summer.

She will kick off the athletics programme at the Olympic Stadium in the heptathlon on Friday August 3. First up that morning is the 100m hurdles. But Ennis has revealed she would love to concentrate on that individual discipline once her body can no longer cope with seven events.

The 2004 Olympic champion and heptathlon legend Carolina Kluft opted to focus on the long jump once her multi-event days were behind her. 

Ennis, 26, admits: “You get to an age with combined events where your body tells you you can’t do it any more.

“You simply can’t cope with the volume of training.

“I love hurdling and would love to give it a go but only if I was competitive. I wouldn’t want to do hurdles to run slow times and not make teams.

“I’m more of a speed athlete. When you get it right, hurdling is just great. It flows.”