Grace O'Malley-Kumar, the British-Indian teenager stabbed to death while trying to save her friend during a knife attack in Nottingham over two years ago, was on Monday honoured with the George Medal – one of Britain's highest civilian honours for acts of great bravery.
Grace, aged 19, was returning to her University of Nottingham with friend Barnaby Webber, also 19, when accosted by knife-wielding Valdo Calocane in June 2023.
They were both killed in the attack by Calocane, who was later sentenced to a mental health order to be detained in a high-security hospital.
Tributes had poured in amid calls for rewarding the bravery of the young medical student who was studying to become a doctor like her parents, Dr Sanjoy Kumar and Dr Sinead O'Malley.
Grace was an avid sports person who played for the England under-18s hockey team and was also a talented cricketer.
“I want to pay tribute to all of the recipients, including Grace O’Malley Kumar, who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect her friend. Her legacy will live on as a powerful example of heroism,” British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement announcing the George Medal, conferred posthumously and to be handed over to Grace's family.
“Grace O’Malley-Kumar, who has received the George Medal for intervening in an armed attack in Nottingham on 13th June 2023,” reads the official citation. The George Medal, a silver disc on a ribbon, is Britain's second-highest civilian bravery award after the George Cross and is awarded for "conspicuous gallantry not in the presence of the enemy".
"The bravery she showed was incredible for a young girl," her father, Sanjoy Kumar, has previously said.
Her family has since established the Grace O'Malley-Kumar Foundation to champion and support young people and communities through sport, mental health, and education.
"She was simply walking home after a night out with her friend, Barnaby, after celebrating end-of-year medical school exams, when Barnaby was attacked with a dagger from behind,” reads the mission statement.
“Grace tried to fight off the attacker when he turned his attention to her and went about attacking her in the same brutal manner as he did to Barnaby. Grace's character would never leave a friend, so she did her very best and fought the attacker in a fight she would never win, Grace died a hero,” it reads.
Grace O'Malley Kumar is among 20 extraordinary individuals to be awarded one of three types of honours this week: the George Medal, the King's Gallantry Medal and the King's Commendation for Bravery, in recognition of their courage and bravery in the face of danger.
"This is what true courage looks like. In moments of unimaginable danger, these extraordinary people acted with selflessness and bravery that speaks to the very best of who we are as a nation. We owe each of them – and their families – our deepest thanks. Their actions remind us of the strength and compassion that run through our communities,” added Starmer.
From intervening in armed attacks to rescuing a man falling off a bridge, the 20 awards honour acts of courage over the past few years.
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