Gold medallist Katarina Johnson-Thompson
(Picture: Getty Images)Gold medal winning Katarina Johnson-Thompson paid tribute to her late grandmother after triumphing at the 2022 Commonwealth Games.
The heptathlete, who won gold on Wednesday night at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium, spoke about the loss of her grandmother Mary who died shortly after she returned from competing in the World Championships in the United States.
She said: "She unfortunately passed away a couple of days after I returned from Eugene so it’s been a tough week so I’m just happy to get through it.
"It’s been particularly hard because the last champs at Glasgow indoors she was here so it was quite hard not to see her face in the crowd.”
The Liverpool-born athlete has spoken previously of the support her family has given her allowing her to reach the top and during the 2016 Rio Olympic her mother, Tracey, wrote her an emotional public letter.
In it she revealed how the sports star initially preferred playing football before setting her sights on athletics success saying: “I am very proud of you - not just for your athletic achievements but, most importantly, I am proud of the humble, grounded, wonderful woman you have become.
“It has been an incredible journey.”
Johnson-Thompson grew up in Liverpool and went to school with Killing Eve star Jodie Comer.
The pair have remained friends and Comer paid a public tribute to her when she won at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in Doha, writing: “World champion right there!!!!!!! We couldn’t be prouder of you Johnson-Thompson."
The actress, who was a classmate at Liverpool’s St Julie’s Catholic High School, said: "Your hard work and dedication shows no limits."
Last night’s win was her first victory since Doha and the 29-year-old triumphed with 6377 points ahead of Northern Ireland’s Kate O’Connor who took silver and England team-mate Jade O’Dowda in third.
She said: "I’ve done three heptathlons this year, I’m just happy to get through and healthy. Hopefully this’ll be a stepping stone for me like it was in 2018 for better things to come next year.
"It wasn’t about the points, it was about being competitive, trying to find my third attempt response that I used to have which I didn’t have in the last couple of heptathlons I’ve done. So, I’m so happy for many different reasons."
A ruptured Achilles threatened her Olympic dream last year and, even though she made it to Tokyo, she suffered a serious calf injury in the 200m and had to withdraw.
Her injury nightmare meant she failed to defend her world title in Eugene last month, finishing eighth, as Nafi Thiam reclaimed the crown after losing to Johnson-Thompson in Doha in 2019
