Kate O'Connnor from Newry, Northern Ireland, did something Thursday that no one from her country had done in nearly 50 years — she won gold in the heptathlon at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. The 3,731 points she earned across seven events — sprints, jumps, and throws — made her the first Northern Irish athlete to claim a multi-class gold medal since Dame Mary Peters won the pentathlon back in 1974.
O'Connnor entered the competition as the favorite after England's Katarina Johnson-Thompson, who had beaten her for gold in 2022, withdrew just before the event. And she proved she was ready for the pressure. On Tuesday, she flew out of the blocks, running the 100 meters hurdles in just 13.54 seconds and clearing 1.82 meters in the high jump to lead the pack after the first two events.
The weather had other plans. Rain soaked the evening session, and O'Connnor admitted she was "gutted" after the shot put, where she managed only 12.85 meters in the tricky conditions. But she did not let it break her. She bounced back the next day with a season's best 52.85 meters in the javelin and another strong long jump at 1.82 meters, stretching her lead from 49 points to a comfortable 258 points heading into the final event.
The 800 meters was simply a victory lap. O'Connnor crossed the line first in 2 minutes 10.45 seconds, her teammate Anna McCauley close behind in second. As the crowd cheered, O'Connnor had done what seemed impossible just days before: she had brought Northern Ireland back to the top of the podium. Her gold medal ceremony takes place Thursday at 6:30 PM BST.