This is a wonderful piece on Katie Moon, one among our favourite athletes, by Deji Ogeyingbo. Katie Moon was one among our hottest athletes of 2023 and 2024! Deji Ogeyingbo wrote articles on American athletes over the past couple of months.
Katie Moon: The Regular Hand of U.S. Pole Vaulting
Since her Olympic gold medal in Tokyo in 2020, Katie Moon has grow to be synonymous with profitable when it issues most. Moon has delivered time and time once more, with a exceptional streak of main medals that features gold on the 2022 and 2023 World Championships and, not too long ago, Silver on the 2024 Paris Olympics.
Her success isn’t just concerning the headlines and the data, however her capability to carry out underneath stress. Moon’s consistency on the prime of her recreation has earned her a popularity as one of the dependable athletes in monitor and discipline. After a difficult 12 months marked by accidents, together with a hard achilles, the 33-year-old might have simply bowed out of the Paris 2024 Olympics. Nonetheless, as an alternative, she pushed via and as soon as once more secured a podium end.
“I awakened not feeling very nicely, only a headache, and I felt like my nervous system was just a little flat,” Moon mentioned after the competitors. “However I simply tried to remain centered. That is the Olympics.”
That degree of willpower is what has outlined her profession. Regardless of struggling bodily and battling the stress of being the defending Olympic gold medalist, Moon’s capability to remain composed when it mattered most was on full show. Moon settled for silver in a contest that noticed her good pal, Nina Kennedy, take Gold with a shocking 4.90m vault however expressed nothing however pleasure in her efficiency.
“As soon as I used to be right here, I used to be simply praying that my physique would maintain up as a result of I felt able to leaping excessive and doing one thing nice once more,” she mentioned. “And I’m simply so, so completely satisfied that it did.”
Her method to this Olympics sharply contrasted with the stress she felt prior to now. After back-to-back gold medals on the World Championships in 2022 and 2023, Moon was now seen because the athlete to beat. However as an alternative of succumbing to expectations, she shifted her mindset. A season marred by damage meant many counted her out, which, in Moon’s case, might have been exactly what she wanted. Feeling like an underdog once more, she took the stress off herself, which helped her carry out on one of many sport’s largest phases.
Whereas her physique might not have been in peak situation, Moon’s psychological energy proved to be simply as vital. She knew that within the pole vault, something might occur, and in Paris, it was Kennedy’s flip to shine. However that didn’t make Moon’s silver any much less beneficial. It was yet one more demonstration of her unwavering capability to rise to the event, irrespective of the challenges.
“I’m so relieved and proud of the way it went,” Moon mentioned, reflecting on her journey. “The season was powerful. I had an Achilles damage all through most of it, and I used to be simply relieved to make the workforce once more.”
Her continued success hasn’t been nearly her drive but in addition concerning the relationships she’s constructed alongside the best way. The bond between Moon and Kennedy is one among mutual respect, and their shared success within the 2023 World Championships, after they determined to share the gold medal—has solely deepened their connection. In Paris, Kennedy’s gold was hard-earned, however Moon, the sportswoman, provided reward rapidly.
“Nina is such a superb competitor,” she mentioned. “She confirmed up, and he or she’s just about the age I used to be after I actually figured it out, and it’s cool watching that occur in real-time for another person.”
That type of sportsmanship, mixed along with her consistency, has made Moon a determine to admire, not simply within the pole vault however in monitor and discipline at massive. She’s not nearly profitable; she’s about exhibiting up, 12 months after 12 months, irrespective of the circumstances.
As Moon seems towards the longer term, competing within the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles stays tempting. However at 33, she is practical concerning the challenges of one other Olympic cycle. “I’ll completely undergo subsequent 12 months,” she mentioned. “However after that, we’ll simply take it 12 months by 12 months.”
Whether or not Paris was her final Olympic Video games or not, Moon’s legacy as one of the reliable athletes ever representing the U.S. is firmly established.
