European Championships: Katarina Johnson-Thompson revels in new-found confidence
- Published
European Championships 2018: GB's Johnson-Thompson wins silver medal in heptathlon
Athletics European Championships |
|---|
Venue: Olympic Stadium, Berlin. Dates: 7-12 August |
Coverage: Live across BBC TV, BBC Radio 5 live and sports extra plus the BBC Sport website with further coverage on BBC iPlayer, Red Button, Connected TVs and mobile app. |
Katarina Johnson-Thompson says she has gained confidence after pushing heptathlon gold medallist Nafi Thiam all the way at the European Championships in Berlin.
The Briton had an outside chance of beating the Belgian Olympic and world champion coming into the event-closing 800m - but fell just short.
Asked if she can close the gap on Thiam, she said: "I feel I can do it.
"I believe in myself and this is going to be good for me moving forwards."
Johnson-Thompson, a 2009 world youth champion, stepped out of the shadow of former British Olympic and world champion Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill in 2016 after her rival retired following the Rio Olympics.
But it was not until this year that the 25-year-old won her first major titles - she clinched World Indoor pentathlon gold in Birmingham, before adding the Commonwealth heptathlon title in April.
"I was happy with my first two medals, but this has a big significance factor for me especially given my build-up after the Commonwealth Games," she added, referring to the calf injury she carried in the Gold Coast.
"It has taken a lot of work from a lot of different people to get me on the starting line today. With my preparation and my build-up, this has been one of my best performances ever.
European Championships 2018: GB's Johnson-Thompson wins silver medal in heptathlon
"Up until this point, these championships, I wasn't as confident as I am coming out of them. Obviously I had tougher opposition here."
Ennis-Hill, who won the European title in 2010, said that Johnson-Thompson's two victories earlier in 2018 coupled with this display had turned her into a "completely different athlete".
"You can't underestimate the value of those two titles - it sends you on a wave," the 32-year-old told BBC Sport.
"She came here and saw herself as a fierce competitor - she's mentally changed her approach."
Britain's Sydney 2000 heptathlon champion Denise Lewis added: "The mental gain Kat will get from this is massive.
"She has risen to the challenge, she has earned this silver medal."
Four-time Olympic sprinting gold medallist Michael Johnson said the British heptathlete had now "established consistency".
"I was a little concerned coming into today with her in the lead and having had all night to think about the pressure, but she has handled it really well," he told BBC Sport.
"It's significant for her - she's sometimes spiralled when things don't go too well. Katarina has been able to put together two really good heptathlons in competition and established consistency when we've been used to flashes of brilliance followed by disappointment."