Kate O’Connor (Dundalk St. Gerard’s AC) lies in second place overnight in Tokyo in the Women’s Heptathlon at the World Athletics Championships after a sensational performance on the opening day of her competition.
The 24-year-old set new personal bests in three of her four events to score 3906 points, 169 more than she had at this stage of her Irish record which she broke in July on her way to winning World University Games gold.
The Dundalk athlete opened her day with a huge PB in the 100m Hurdles, clocking a brilliant time of 13.44 seconds. She moved onto the High Jump where she was faultless up to 1.83 metres. The bar then moved to 1.86 metres and O’Connor had two failed attempts before soaring over and setting a new 2cm PB.
A solid Shot Put of 14.37m moved her up to third, before she ran a massive PB of 24.07 seconds in the 200m to round out the day.
“I just came to this championship, and I just wanted to have fun,” O’Connor told Athletics Ireland afterwards. “I’ve already had the year of my dreams, and I’ve been really trying to be present in the moment with everything I’m doing.
“I’ve known I’ve had a good hurdles PB in me for a long time and sometimes I’m on the line and I think ‘oh I’ll get through this’, rather than just attacking it. I did a few runs with Sarah Lavin on our training camp; she gave me some really good advice going into that hurdles race and I feel like she’d be proud of me!
“Every single event that I’ve done, I’ve enjoyed every second,” she added. “I’m really proud of all my performances out there.”
O’Connor will be back in action in the early hours of the morning with the Long Jump, Javelin and 800m all on the agenda.
Elsewhere, Ireland had three men in the heats of the Men’s 5000m with Brian Fay (Raheny Shamrock AC), Darragh McElhinney (Bantry AC) and Andrew Coscoran (Star of the Sea AC) all toeing the line.
McElhinney finished the highest, crossing the line in tenth in Heat Two in 13:42.56, missing out on a final spot by two places in his debut appearance at the World Athletics Championships.
“I’m a bit disappointed; it stings to have been so close to the final,” he said. “I’ve put a performance out there that I can be proud of, I tried to put myself amongst it and close well. I did everything I could do; I’m just a tiny bit away from that level right now.”
Coscoran, who had made the 1500m final earlier in the week, had to settle for 19th in the same heat as McElhinney.
“It would’ve taken everything to go absolutely perfect to make it through there, I was definitely tired after three rounds of the 1500m…It was too much work to do on tired legs. Maybe if things had gone perfectly, I would’ve been closer to the action, but it unfortunately wasn’t the case,” said Coscoran.
Despite putting himself in contention Brian Fay faded with one mile to go in the first heat, clocking 13:31.12 to finish 17th.
“It was hard…The season’s been so long, this year I had to keep chasing races…I’m going to keep showing up and trying my best. I need to focus on being the best version of myself on the track,” he said.
As well as Kate O’Connor’s heptathlon, Irish eyes will also be focused on Cian McPhillips (UCD AC) in the final of the Men’s 800m on the penultimate day of the championships. McPhillips will be the first Irishman to race in a global championship outdoor final in the event and will be hoping for a strong performance.
Ireland’s women’s 4x400m relay team also take to the track at the Japan National Stadium; they will be doing their upmost to make the final.
Team Ireland Results Summary
Day Seven – Evening Session – Friday September 19th
- Kate O’Connor – Women’s Heptathlon – 3906 points (2nd after 4 events)
- Kate O’Connor – 100m Hurdles – Women’s Heptathlon – 13.44 PB (1059 points)
- Kate O’Connor – High Jump – Women’s Heptathlon – 1.86m PB (1054 points)
- Brian Fay – Men’s 5000m – Heat 1/2 – 13:31.12 (17th, does not advance)
- Darragh McElhinney – Men’s 5000m – Heat 2/2 – 13:42.56 (10th, does not advance)
- Andrew Coscoran – Men’s 5000m – Heat 2/2 – 13:56.95 (19th, does not advance)
- Kate O’Connor – Shot Put – Women’s Heptathlon – 14.37m (819 points)
- Kate O’Connor – 200m – Women’s Heptathlon – 24.07 (974 points)
Team Ireland Schedule: Irish Time (Local time in brackets)
Day Eight – Morning Session – Saturday September 20th
- Kate O’Connor – Long Jump – Women’s Heptathlon – 03:35 (11:35)
Day Eight – Evening Session – Saturday September 20th
- Kate O’Connor – Javelin – Women’s Heptathlon – 11:00 (19:00)
- Women’s 4x400m Relay – Heat 2/2 – 12:11 (20:11)
- Kate O’Connor – 800m – Women’s Heptathlon – 13:11 (21:11)
- Cian McPhillips – Men’s 800m – Final – 14:22 (22:22)
Where to watch
RTÉ Sport will bring you comprehensive live coverage across the nine days. See RTÉ listings for details.
- Results are HERE
- Interviews available on Athletics Ireland social media channels
