The look on Johnson-Thompson’s face after crossing the line in the 800m spoke volumes. Yes, her body ached after seven punishing events in two days. But she was also happy. Strangely happy. “That was for her,” Johnson-Thompson said, as the cheers turned to overwhelming empathy. “Unfortunately he passed away a couple of days after I got back from Eugene so it’s been a tough week so I’m happy to get over it. “It was particularly difficult because at the last champs in Glasgow she was here, so it was very difficult not to see her face in the crowd.” Admittedly, the pattern was more of a British Championship level, with six of the eight contestants coming from Great Britain and Northern Ireland. And Johnson-Thompson’s winning score of 6,377 was also modest by her lofty standards. But after so many tears and turmoil, this victory, her first in the heptathlon since October 2019, tasted especially sweet. Most athletes struggle to come back from a career-threatening injury. Johnson had two in the past two years. A three-inch scar on her left Achilles tendon and another on a torn right calf muscle suffered at the Tokyo Olympics have healed but have also left their mark. “It feels incredibly special, a champion at home. I’ve really put a lot of work and effort and heart and soul into being here on this line, especially after the tough upset in Eugene. So, I’m very happy.” Katarina Johnson-Thompson finished with a relatively low score. Photo: Jonny Weeks/The Guardian Johnson-Thompson, who came here after finishing eighth at the world championships, went into day two 109 points clear of Northern Ireland’s Kate O’Connor. She then extended that with a best of 6.33m on her third and final attempt. He wasn’t out of the woods though, with O’Connor having a much better javelin. But it was here that Johnson-Thompson gathered the heart of a champion, clearing 44.33m in a final effort to beat her personal best by 30cm. That left Johnson-Thompson with a big enough lead to know the gold was safe, and she did just that, finishing the 800 meters in 2:13.93. O’Connor took silver with 6,233 points, while England’s Jade O’Dowda took bronze with 6,212. That gold came exactly 10 years ago to the day Johnson-Thompson made her major league debut at the 2012 Olympics, where she finished 13th with 6,267 points. It was the start of an illustrious career that brought her five major titles, including a gold medal at the 2019 world championships, but also some recent setbacks. This show answered some questions, but also changed. Earlier this summer Johnson-Thompson hadn’t completed a heptathlon in three years. Now he’s done three in nine weeks. This, no doubt, is a huge positive. But amid the celebrations, the fact that her three scores – 6,174 at Getzy, 6,222 at Eugene and now 6,377 here – are among the lowest of her career. Subscribe to The Recap, our weekly email of editors’ picks. To put that into context, Nafi Thiam won the world championships in Eugene a fortnight ago with 6,974 points, while bronze was secured with 6,755. It’s not a gap that Johnson-Thompson must now bridge, but a chasm. But if anyone can make the leap, it’s surely the popular Liverpudlian. “I’m just happy to be having fun and being healthy,” she said. “It wasn’t about the points, it was about being competitive. Hopefully this will be a stepping stone for me and next year I can put everything behind me and start really fresh.”
