Next year the World Championships come to London, where Ennis-Hill won Olympic gold four years ago, but after missing out on retaining her title by 35 points, the Sheffield athlete would not commit to continuing.
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‘I just had to go for myself, ‘ said Ennis-Hill. If I do decide to stop, it will be sad to see that go on without me. Her Belgian rival, in one of her weaker events, clocked 25.10 seconds (878 points).
Jessica Ennis-Hill and Katarina Johnson-Thompson got their bids for Olympic heptathlon gold off to flying starts in Rio on Friday. “She’s had two great days she wasn’t going to give that up”. Before her final attempt the likeable 23-year-old sat on her chair repeatedly rehearsing her throw, but she was unable to improve her score of 598 points.
“Going into the final round I definitely wasn’t as stressed as my family were at home”, he said.
He said: “If Kat wants to win Tokyo gold in 2020, then she has to sort out the technique of her javelin and shot”.
She opened up with an impressive 12.84 seconds 100 metres hurdles on a wet track, then cleared a season’s best of 1.89m – her second-best jump at a global championships – in the high jump.
She said: “I’m really pleased with my hurdles, high jump as well, but shot put I’m devastated”. I don’t want just to fizzle out.
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. Over the past 2 days, Jessica has put her absolute all into the heptathlon – event after event after event.
Matt Cosgrove, performance director at Welsh Cycling, said: “I would like to congratulate Elinor Barker on her Olympic gold medal in the team pursuit with Team GB”.
Ennis-Hill, who now heads off on holiday with her husband Andy and Reggie, has always maintained since her return following her son’s birth that her priority was being a mother.
She won the last discipline of the event, the 800m, but not by enough to overtake Thiam, who scored five personal bests.
The athlete had wanted to retain her Olympic heptathlon title after winning gold at London 2012. “At this moment, I’m exhausted and emotional – it’s a big decision”.
But, whatever happens in the future, Ennis-Hill is just so inspiring.
She could, though, have been so much better placed but for a terrible shot showing.
“I feel very happy and content with the way my career has gone and what I’ve achieved so far”.
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“I still want to be active and keep fit and be involved in sport in some element and get people active and inspire them but I don’t know what exactly that will involve”.
