Kate O’Connor has won silver in the heptathlon at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, setting a new Irish record of 6,714 points.
The Dundalk St Gerard’s athlete becomes the first Irish individual to medal in a multi-discipline event at the Worlds, and only the sixth Irish athlete ever to reach the podium.
O’Connor delivered five personal bests across seven events, including a gutsy 2:09.56 in the decisive 800m.
She joins Irish legends Eamonn Coghlan, Sonia O’Sullivan, Gillian O’Sullivan, Olive Loughnane, and Rob Heffernan as a World Championships medallist.
Irish Medals at the World Athletics Championships
1983 – Eamonn Coghlan, GOLD, 5,000m
1993 – Sonia O’Sullivan, SILVER, 1500m
1995 – Sonia O’Sullivan, GOLD, 5,000m
2003 – Gillian O’Sullivan, SILVER, 20km Walk
2009 – Olive Loughnane, GOLD, 20km Walk
2013 – Robert Heffernan, GOLD, 50km Walk
2025 – Kate O’Connor, SILVER, Heptathlon
O’Connor had already enjoyed a superb 2025 season, claiming bronze in the pentathlon at the European Championships and silver at the World Indoors before setting a national record at the World University Games to claim gold outdoors.
A graduate and scholarship recipient at Ulster University, I have interviewed O’Connor at events on the Belfast campus, and she is every inch as engaging a person in life as she comes across on the TV. A true star.
Speaking after Saturday’s medal-winning display, O’Connor said: “It’s insane, words can’t describe the way that I feel or the year that I’ve had. My indoor season was a complete dream, and I wanted to carry that form into the outdoors. I’ve never come to a championship before and had as much pressure as I’ve had on my shoulders this week. I expected big things from myself, and I knew I was in with a shot of winning a medal.”
“I enjoyed every single second of the competition yesterday, but today not so much as I hurt my knee in the long jump, and it was just a real fight to the line in every event. The team around me have filled me with so much confidence today and it was just pure grit and determination that I managed to pull myself through.”
Chatting about her thoughts heading into the final 800m event, O’Connor said: “Going into that 800 meters, I told myself I wasn’t going to pass up this opportunity and I was never going to just settle for a bronze medal which was probably the easy option. I was always going to fight 100% to the line and I managed to pull out a PB (in the 800m).”
“My expectations for myself changed this year and they’ve probably changed again now. I think I’ve set myself up really well for the next three years leading up to the Olympics and I’m prepared to put my head down and work really hard. I’m so happy that I can represent my country on a global stage and win global medals which hasn’t been done in a long time.”
McPhillips Comes So Close
Cian McPhillips announced his arrival on the global stage with a sensational fourth place finish in the men’s 800m final, smashing the Irish national record with a time of 1:42.15.
Coming from last place on the final bend, the Longford athlete surged through the field, missing out on a medal by just 0.8 seconds. Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi claimed gold in a championship record 1:41.86, with Algeria’s Djamel Sedjati (1:41.90) and Canada’s Marco Arop (1:41.95) taking silver and bronze.
Reflecting on his race, the 23-year-old UCD student said: “It would have been nice to get a medal, but we’ll leave that for next time. I’ve taken another second off my PB and was the first European home. Mixing it with the world’s best gives me huge confidence for the future.”
It completes a remarkable graduation to the senior ranks for the McPhillips who has overcome a serious back injury since winning gold in the 1500m at the European U20 Championships back in 2021, alongside fellow Irish gold medallists at those championships – Rhasidat Adeleke and Nick Griggs.
“It’s been a tough road, but I’m proud of the progress. There’s still more to come, and I’m optimistic for next year”, said McPhillips.
Irish Achievement at the Championships
The last nine days have seen Irish athletes break national records on three occasions, and claim a historic silver medal.
Outside of the medals, there were outstanding top-10 finishes for Fionnula McCormack (Marathon, 9th) and Sarah Healy (1500m, 10th), while Andrew Coscoran became the first Irish finalist in the men’s 1500m since Ciarán Ó Lionáird in 2011. The momentum behind Irish field events has also continued with UCD’s Nicola Tuthill finishing 11th in the women’s hammer final.
In all, Ireland secured four top-10 finishes, with a further nine top-20s which augers well heading into what will be another busy season internationally for Ireland’s top stars in 2026.
Most encouragingly, the depth of performance continues to shine through with Irish athletes securing a record fifteen top-24 positions in Tokyo.
World Championship Top-24s:
Tokyo 2025 World Championships:15
Budapest 2023 World Championships:12
Oregon 2022 World Championships: 9
World Champs Results Summary
Kate O’Connor – Women’s Heptathlon – 2nd NR
Cian McPhillips – Men’s 800m – 4th NR x 2
Fionnuala McCormack – Women’s Marathon – Final – 9th
Sarah Healy – Women’s 1500m Final – 10th
Nicola Tuthill – Women’s Hammer Throw – Final – 11th
Mixed 4x400m Relay – 11th
Andrew Coscoran – Men’s 1500m – 12th
Sarah Lavin – Women’s 100m Hurdles – 13th
Women’s 4x400m Relay – 16th
Brian Fay – Men’s 5000m – 17th
Mark English – Men’s 800m – 18th
Efrem Gidey – Men’s 10,000m – Final – 19th
Sharlene Mawdsley – Women’s 400m –20th
Sophie O’Sullivan – Women’s 1500m – 22nd
Peter Lynch – Men’s Marathon – Final – 24th
Darragh McElhinney – Men’s 5000m – 28th
Oisin Lane – Men’s 35km Race Walk – Final – 28th
Eric Favors – Men’s Shot Put – 28th
Andrew Coscoran – Men’s 5000m – 37th
Sophie Becker – Women’s 400m – 37th
Cathal Doyle – Men’s 1500m – 42nd
Laura Nicholson – Women’s 1500m – 50th
Hiko Tonosa – Men’s Marathon – Final – DNF
David Kenny – Men’s 20km Race Walk – DNS
Irish World Championship Medals
1983 – Eamonn Coghlan, GOLD, 5,000m
1993 – Sonia O’Sullivan, SILVER, 1500m
1995 – Sonia O’Sullivan, GOLD, 5,000m
2003 – Gillian O’Sullivan, SILVER, 20km Walk
2009 – Olive Loughnane, GOLD, 20km Walk
2013 – Robert Heffernan, GOLD, 50km Walk
2025 – Kate O’Connor, SILVER, Heptathlon
Image Credit RTÉ Coverage
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