If they graded the skill of juggling commitments the way they do martial arts, Kelsey Francis would surely have a black belt.
The 22-year-old is completing her PhD at Bond University, competes in professional weightlifting and just walked away with gold and bronze medals at her most recent round of national Judo competitions last month.
Francis took gold at the UniSport National Judo Championships, beating opponent Erika Abecilla on waza-ari points.
It came a day after she powered through a competitive field to secure bronze at the Brisbane International Open, taking the podium finish with a decisive ippon – the judo equivalent of a knockout.
“I'm actually really happy overall, I probably wasn't in the best form overall, but I learnt a lot,” Francis said.
The two events presented differing competitors. While the UniSport championships featured domestic university rivals, the Brisbane International Open had a global flair.
“For the Brisbane International Open there were quite a few international competitors who were incredible,” Francis said.
“There were competitors from all over – Europe, New Zealand and New Caledonia.
“It was very high energy, intensive competition. I've never fought people at that level before which was very different.”
Studious by nature, Francis couldn’t help studying the technique of Polish Grand-Prix level Judoka, Urszula Hofman fight.
“I’ve never quite seen Judo at that level in person,” Francis said.
“She (Hofman) fights in some of the Grand Prix which are the biggest international Judo events.
“It was just interesting to see someone who's a similar size and style to me and to see the way they fight, because obviously she's done judo for so long and I'm still relatively new to sport.
“It was amazing to see how calm she was under pressure, I think that's something that I want to emulate going forward.”
Francis’ rise to the top is remarkable for someone who has only been competing in the sport for two years, and also juggles her training with her elite weightlifting.
Equally demanding is her PhD titled “Empirical Essays on Gender Empowerment, Institutions, Inequality and Energy Innovations.
Next up, she’ll swap the tatami for a lifting platform, competing in the National Weightlifting Championships this November before she will bow out for a well-deserved break prior to next season.