TOKYO (AP) — Anna Hall became America’s second winner of the world heptathlon title — joining Jackie Joyner-Kersee — by wrapping up a wire-to-wire endurance test and cruising into the finish line Saturday to celebrate her biggest victory.
It’s the first major title for Hall, one of the world’s most consistent performers in the seven-part event, after years of close calls and disappointments. She finished with 6,888 points.
Three years ago at worlds, she won bronze. Two years ago, she lost the title by a scant 20 points, falling less than 2 seconds short in the last event, the 800 meters, from taking the gold. Then, last year, she was forced to rush back from an Achilles injury to get ready for the Olympics, where she finished fifth.
On a calm cool evening on Day 8 of the world championships in Tokyo, Hall finally made it to the top.
“Ever since I came on the circuit and won my first medal, that’s been something I’ve been trying to do,” Hall said. “Jackie and I have talked about it, and we were like, ‘The USA does make great heptathletes.’”
Among her biggest fans is Joyner-Kersee herself, who has said she sees potential for the 24-year-old from Colorado to rewrite some of the history she still owns.
Joyner-Kersee is the only U.S. athlete to win the event at the Olympics (1988, ’92) and she holds both the world record from 1988 and the record at world championships from her victory in Rome in 1987.
Hall cracked the vaunted 7,000-point mark at a meet in June and a run at JJK’s records looked in play over the two days in Tokyo. All a product of not giving up, even after the injury and close calls.
“That entire time, I just put my head down and I worked,” Hall said.
Any hopes there got tripped up by a less-than-great long jump, but the overall result was never in doubt. Hall went into the final event, the 800 meters, with a 122-point edge over eventual silver medalist Kate O’Connor of Ireland, and as one of the fastest runners in the 20-woman race, nobody was going to catch her.
Defending champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson finished in a rare tie for third place with American Taliyah Brooks. They finished exactly 3.61 seconds apart in the 800 to both end up with 6,581 points.
___
AP sports: https://apnews.com/sports
