Kat’s LEAP of faith
I can lose the word ‘promising’ by winning gold in Rio and I WON’T crack under pressure, says Ennis-Hill’s British rival
KATARINA Johnson-Thompson is sitting on a refurbished red double-decker London bus a few hundred metres from the Olympic Stadium, discussing the evening of Super Saturday in 2012 when she finished 15th. It was while doing a group lap of honour led by a triumphant Jessica Ennis-Hill that she resolved to be among the medals herself in four years time.
Nobody present with a decent knowledge of heptathlon would have scoffed at the idea.
Already a world junior champion, she was significantly better than Ennis-Hill had been at the same age and had come within a whisker of beating the junior pentathlon record held by peerless Swedish champion Carolina Kluft. It was little surprise when Ennis-Hill said she would retire as soon as JohnsonThompson began to catch up.
At a shade over 6ft, nine inches taller than Ennis-Hill, history suggests she is the perfect build, too. The next year, at the World Championships in Moscow, she was on the way to recognising her potential finishing fifth in the heptathlon, at just 20 years of age.
There have been reminders of her potential greatness since: pentathlon gold at the European Indoor Championships in Prague last year and victory in Gotzis, Austria in 2014, the biggest meeting for multi-eventers outside major championships.
But she has not bettered that performance in the heptathlon and her score in Gotzis this year was 6,304 points, more than 300 points down. A series of injuries and a knee operation have hampered training and she appears to suffer from mental fragility, something she would dispute.
Those in the know say if 23-year-old Johnson-Thompson could stitch together the individual performances she is capable of then she would canter to Rio gold. It is a caveat she is fed up of hearing.
‘I don’t want that to be my legacy: “Oh, she could’ve been the best if she’d put it all together”,’ she says. ‘I want to actually put it all together. I do think about that and that’s why I’m trying to do everything I can to do it on the day.
‘It’s definitely frustrating I haven’t been able to so far and I’ve got to develop patience towards it.
‘I’ve been waiting to compete in Rio for four years now so I want to be able to go through each event and just go: “OK, tick that off, couldn’t have done any better in that, next event, OK that’s a personal best or a season’s best”. I want to lose the word promising.’
Johnson-Thompson admits she did not expect her career to cross that of Ennis-Hill who at the age of 30, and after having a baby, has made a remarkable comeback to justify being favourite to defend her Olympic title. She was a surprise winner at the World Championships last year with a relatively modest score of 6,669 points and even notched a long jump personal best on her way to winning the heptathlon in Ratingen last month.
‘It did surprise me to see her do a personal best,’ says Johnson-Thompson. ‘And it spurred me on a little bit to know I now need to do PBs in the shot put and javelin because people are catching up in my good events. I think whoever wins the Olympics now it’ll be on a good score, it’s not going to be won by default and that’s good for the event. I think 6,800 or 6,900 points will be needed and that’s why I’m happy about everyone stepping up.
‘It’s weird because going into 2012 Jess was the best and I wasn’t scared to compete there because I knew her personally. When I was coming through she was already established, it’s not like we were coming up together and battling all the time and that’s why I don’t think we have that rivalry.
‘I’ve got a huge amount of respect for her and what she’s achieved but now I want to win.’ A shift in mentality from the young pretender to a genuine chal- lenger for gold has been required. ‘Yeah I think I can beat her,’ she says, ‘I believe it is possible. I just want to beat whoever comes second.’
The giggles and smile hide the steely focus. Four years ago she was out to have fun but now it is strictly business.
‘I went to kitting out and it brought back memories from four years ago,’ she says. ‘Last time I was doing everything, running around, trying clothes on. This time I was like “training tomorrow, I have to be sensible and conserve my energy, I just want to get my kit and go”. It’s definitely different.
‘In 2012 going to get my kit was like winning. This year it was just part of the process, another box ticked. My change of mindset happened in 2013 in Moscow. When I came fifth it was a big eye-opener. I finished day one and I was in with a chance of a medal but I missed out.’
Canadian Brianne Theisen-Eaton, who tops the world rankings, is Johnson-Thompson’s stiffest opposition beyond Ennis-Hill. But she admits to mental struggles in the past hampering her performances on the big stage and wants to seek advice from the matchless Ennis-Hill on how she keeps her cool, once the older woman retires.
Yet Johnson-Thompson does not believe she has major mental frailties, although three fouls in the long jump ruled her out of the medals in last year’s World Championships and reduced her to tears. Previously her strongest event, she could only manage 6.16m in Gotzis this year and in the shot put circle, a week after throwing a personal best of 13.14m, she seemed to freeze, managing to throw barely 11m.
‘I think I’ve got a good mental approach,’ she says defiantly. ‘I don’t think I crack under pressure or I’m scared — I just think Jess is more consistent than me in performances.
‘I’m 23 years old and Jess didn’t get really consistent until she was 25 or 26 and it’s just years and years of practice and repetition. I’m still trying to learn that but I don’t think there’s anything wrong with my mental side.
‘Beijing is just a memory. The Olympics are next month and nobody’s going to be talking about it then.’