I spent the day training with Katarina Johnson-Thompson

Every runner, of any age – whether you’re thinking of taking it up for the first time or, like me, an experienced veteran in your sixties – can benefit from her resilience, tested time and again. She’s been been injured and struggled with poor form. But, having chatted to her and seen her inspire other athletes, I can report that it’s by no means luck that she won gold at the recent World Athletics Championships in Hungary.  

It’s been a long journey back to the top for KJT, after a ruptured Achilles at the end of 2020 looked to have ended her career. The previous year, she had won her first World Championship gold. Had it not been for Covid and the postponement of the 2020 Olympics, she might have been victorious in that event as well.  

But it’s tackling those setbacks that has made her the incredible athlete she is today.  

Sporting superstars often don’t appear to struggle with everyday issues like demotivation, but KJT has gone through it all, and more.  

Then, when the going gets tough, she simply buckles down and gets on with the work needed. “I have to have the belief that I’ve done it before, so I can do it again,” she says. “When your belief falters, it’s very easy to fall back and say, ‘That’s who I am now’, but if you dare to dream, then it’s possible to move on.” 

For me, having also ruptured my Achilles, those were words to soak up. And she’s right. Three years on from not being able to run to the end of the drive, I can now run up mountains. 

I first chatted with KJT on a Zoom call at the height of lockdown. At that time, we were all restricted to our homes, and had to come to terms with what that meant. For KJT it meant understanding she wouldn’t have a chance of going for gold at the Olympics.

It was fascinating to see how she dealt with that, creating fitness sessions for her dogs online and generally putting a smile on everybody’s faces. She also pursued hobbies and worked on her weaknesses in her own training programmes.  

She did her best to make a tough period as positive as it could be, and improved her core strength. She worked on her mobility and generally trained exceptionally hard.

I remember thinking how rubbish everything was at that point for everybody, but how especially difficult it must be for someone who had all but won the Olympic gold medal. Yet she was upbeat, looking to the future, and ready to embrace everything it would bring, be it “more disappointment or something better”.

Now, that is positive. 

Back to the present, KJT identifies the most important thing in her life, and that’s what she calls her team: her family and coaches. She says with a smile that, thanks to them, she’s “happy off the track and on it. They have belief in me and support me in everything I do.” 

That smile is hugely important, and it reflects something that is rarely mentioned in running: it’s fun. You lace up your trainers because running is an enjoyable sport. Ever since meeting KJT I make sure everybody I coach has a smile on their face. In our group, we run 100-mile races and the pain they involve is something to look forward to. We love hill running. We can’t wait to feel our muscles burn. We’re there to have as much fun as is humanly possible. 

If media images are to be believed, world champions don’t turn up in old Nissans to small local schools to spend a day coaching kids. KJT does and loves it. “It’s fantastic to see the kids enjoying the basics of what athletics provides. Really that’s what it’s all about – enjoying yourself,” she says. “It’ll be great to see how this helps the next crop of talent come through.” 

Indeed, Katarina recently launched the KJT Academy with exactly this sort of thing in mind. “Reaching your full potential in sport, and in life, should not be about what you look like or how much money you have,” she says. “It should be about your passion. It’s about your desire and your willingness to work hard. I couldn’t be prouder or more excited to be able to help young athletes from the most underserved parts of our community in whatever way I can.”