“There’s definitely some younger, new athletes coming through and performing well”. It’s like, ‘Have you still got stuff in the basement?’
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“I’ve got no excuses, I just didn’t execute”.
Although two-time champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce was beaten in the 100m final, Elaine Thompson ensured the title remained with Jamaica as she upgraded from world 200m silver to Olympic 100m gold.
Thiam, a fantastic jumper, will be the first to admit that she does not excel in the running events but the enticement of Olympic gold allowed her to dig deep and find extra reserves of energy.
“I might not do this again”, she said, wrapped in a British flag.
Asked if Rio “may be the last one”, Ennis-Hill replied: ‘Possibly, yeah. But reflecting on Sunday, she said was proud and happy to have won the silver medal and now it was time for a break, for celebrations, and to think about the future. But the heptathlon is a tough event, and I’ve done it so long.
Ennis-Hill, who became a mother past year, had been bidding to become only the third woman to retain an Olympic athletics title after giving birth.
Jemima Sumgong made the most of a kick with 6km to run to win Kenya’s first ever Olympic women’s marathon gold on Sunday.
The Sheffield-born coach said it might be time for him to “be selfish”, should Ennis-Hill retire.
The heptathlon is a seven-event competition held over two days. The complicating factor in her decision is the fact that next year’s world championships are in London.
We can’t even begin to think how much training that Ennis-Hill puts in and how taxing it must be for her to be away from her family whilst she is training and competing.
But the Briton’s 800m best is nearly 10 seconds quicker, meaning she remains favourite for gold should she hold her nerve and form under this most intense pressure.
Interestingly enough, there was only a 10-second difference between Thiam and Ennis-Hill’s Personal Best’s, so we knew it would be a long shot for Ennis-Hill to take Gold.
Johnson-Thompson’s technique deserted her as she relinquished her grasp in the lead, failing to hit the 12m line as she slumped to sixth.
Thiam finished with a winning score of 6810, with Ennis-Hill recording 6775 ahead of Canada’s Brianne Theisen Eaton, who scooped the bronze medal with 6653.
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“I don’t really know to be honest (about the next chapter)”, said Ennis-Hill, 30.
