But she may find it hard to walk away from a chance to go for the top spot and retain her crown at the World Championships next year in London – the sight of that famous night four years ago when Ennis-Hill cemented her place in the hearts and minds of the British public. ‘I don’t want to be that athlete who fizzles out.
Advertisement
At first she called them “happy tears” because it’s another medal, but then acknowledged how hard it was going to be to give up and just how close she was to doing that.
“In the 800m I was just trying not to let Jess go, I thought I could do 2:15 or 16 and not let her go too far”.
The performance of her life started with a personal best in the 100m hurdles on Saturday, then another with a huge leap of 1.98m in the high jump – the best ever clearance in a heptathlon – to put her into contention at the end of the first day.
Ennis-Hill finished on 6,775 points, 35 behind the 21-year-old part-time geography student Thiam from Liege.
Ennis-Hill produced a gutsy display of front-running in a bid to make up the near 10 seconds she had to finish ahead of Thiam to deny her gold, but it was not enough. I have just tried to stay focused on getting here and competing but it does creep into my mind, thinking this is possibly my last competition and that I might not do this event again or that one.
“I kind of think in my mind I know what I am going to do”.
“But I gave it everything I’ve got so I am not walking away wishing I had done this or that because I didn’t everything I could over these two days”. I’ve had an unbelievable few years and achieved so much in the sport.
Speaking to BBC Sport, the athlete said: “Yeah, I’m really emotional”.
The complication for Ennis-Hill is that the next World Championships are in London.
Ennis-Hill performed well – indeed her score was her best since London 2012, since which she has given birth to her now two-year-old son Reggie.
But sadly, she lost out to Belgium’s Nafissatou Thiam and took home an impressive silver medal instead.
“It is a silver medal and I am back on the podium which is great”. But Thiam never relented, producing three more personal bests on the second day, including a monster 53m throw in the javelin despite having not competed in the event since June because of an elbow injury.
“I think it is tough for Kat”. “I’m definitely a more rounded person”.
“It’s insane. I wasn’t expecting that – maybe top eight, but not the gold”.
The reigning Olympic champion had sensed her moment had gone when Thiam, despite apparently nursing a sore shoulder, threw an astonishing 53.13 metres in the javelin, the penultimate event.
Meanwhile, Johnson-Thompson’s chances of bronze bit the dust after a sub-par 6.51m leap in the long jump and a awful performance in the javelin.
Advertisement
Yet the Sheffield girl – a pin up of London and Rio games – remains a victor in all our hearts, To become a mum, then regain world and come so close to retaining her Olympic title puts her in Britain’s hall of fame forever.
