Nicknamed "Liquid Nails", Kelly was born on 18 November 1991 in Baghdad, Iraq with a double arm and leg deficiency.

[1][2] Until the age of seven, he lived in at Baghdad's Mother Teresa Orphanage with his brother, Emmanuel who has a similar disability.

[1][2][3] Moira Kelly, on her own, met the brothers in 1998 and with her parents' help, brought them to Victoria, Australia in 2000 to get medical care for their disability.

[2] Kelly is an S4, SB3 (breaststroke), SM4 (individual medley) classified swimmer.He has been coached by Brad Harris, Yuriy Vdovychenko and in 2024 by Alex Hirschauer.

[1] Kelly first represented Australia in 2009 at the Darwin, Northern Territory hosted Oceania Paralympic Championships.

[2] He competed in the 2010 Australian National Championships, finishing first in the 100 metre breaststroke event in world record time.

[11] At the 2019 World Para Swimming Championships, London, Kelly won the silver medal in the Men's 150m Individual Medley SM3.

[14] At the 2023 World Para Swimming Championships, Manchester, England, he won the gold medal in the Men's 150m individual medley SM3.