Can Nina’s shared world crown stand alone in Paris?

It was an unforgettable scene in global sport.

Australia’s pole vault queen Nina Kennedy standing side-by-side with American Katie Moon, deciding to share the gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships.

Having both cleared 4.90 metres in a gruelling competition, unable to be split on count back and both visibly emotional, the pair, who compete regularly against each other on the international circuit, decided it was best that they both share the world crown.

“I feel like everybody asks about this, probably because it was the highlight of my career so far,” Nina said.

“I jumped two Australian records, two personal bests, and Katie and I famously shared the gold medal.

“It’s made for a really cool Olympics preview. Who’s going to win the gold medal now?”

In Budapest it could be argued that Katie, as the reigning world champion, took to the runway as favourite.

Nina, on the other hand, had different ideas about who should come away with the title.

Eclipsing her own personal best and the Australian record by an incredible eight centimetres to tie for first, Nina nervously watched as the bar wobbled after her career-defining 4.90m clearance.

Nina’s success at Budapest 2023 did not come overnight.

A bronze medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games launched her onto the global stage, but before her injury, she missed the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha.

An unexpected exposure to COVID-19 at Tokyo 2020 upended her debut Olympic performance. Yet it has been a road paved with success ever since – bronze at the 2022 World Athletics Championships, gold at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games and last year’s national record leap for the world crown.

“Tokyo was difficult. It was a horrible Olympics for me,” Nina reflected.

“I’d jumped higher than ever before going in and I was going there hoping for a medal.

“I think in the end I came 12th. I didn’t make the final and it feels like a lifetime ago.

“I’m a different person now, a different athlete, in a different position with everything. My self-belief and athletic ability [since then] have come a long way.”

The 27-year-old is a training partner of Kurtis Marschall, himself a two-time Commonwealth champion and world championships bronze medallist, at the pole vault factory that is the West Australian Institute of Sport.

She arrives at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games approaching her best form. She started in the international season with a 4.73m clearance at the Doha-leg of the Diamond League, quickly backed-up by a 4.80m clearance in Turku, Finland, 4.75m in Sotteville, France, 4.88m to win the Monaco Diamond League and 4.85m to win in London, again surpassing her main rivals.

“My gut response is to say that I can win gold, that I want nothing less than the gold medal, but it’s important to understand if I can control that,” Nina said.

“Let’s break down expectations versus goals. I have goals that I want to win, but I can’t control that 100 per cent.

“I feel in control if I focus on expectations. I expect to control how I go out there, how I work with my team, what I focus on, and by doing that, leaving it all on the track, it will allow me to leave Paris happy [whatever the outcome].” 

Nina openly admits that the road to Paris 2024 has not always been easy.

The challenges of mental health have at times prevented her from training at her best, but with the support of her family – including avid Australian athletics team fan Gwenda Kennedy – and coach Paul Burgess, she continues to find her best.

“Talking about mental health as an athlete is really, really important,” Nina explained.

“The best way to describe it is that for so long, all through my junior career, I had my self-worth tied to performance. I think a lot of athletes do that.

“I’ve realised now that they are completely different things and know that I can still be an amazing person if I’ve won or lost.

“I think that focusing on me as a human, and making Nina the human really happy, healthy, and fun, living by my values and doing the right things for me as a person has made me a much better athlete.

“It’s not sport psych (sic), it’s psych (sic), and I probably didn’t realise how much knowing that was going to help [me jump well].”

The qualifying rounds of the women’s pole vault are during the day session on Monday 5 August at Stade de France, with the final to follow on the evening of Wednesday 7 August.

By Cody Lynch, Athletics Australia and Australian Olympic Committee
Posted 7/08/2024