Last night at the 123.ie National Athletics Awards in Santry, Kate O’Connor was honoured with not one, but two major awards - capping off what many are calling a breakthrough season for Irish athletics. She was named Athlete of the Year and additionally took home the Field & Multi-Event Athlete of the Year gong.
It was a triumph that felt almost inevitable after the year she’s had - yet still resoundingly deserved.
Championship medals & national records
In September 2025, at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, O’Connor won silver in the heptathlon - delivering an Irish record 6,714 points, and recording five personal bests across the seven events. Despite competing with a knee injury from the long jump, she showed extraordinary resilience, particularly in the final 800m.
Earlier in the year she claimed gold at the World University Games, and also medalled at both the World Indoor Championships (pentathlon) and the European Indoor Championships, reinforcing her consistency across indoor and outdoor seasons.
That string of performances has not only made her the national heptathlon and pentathlon record holder, but has also cemented her place among Europe’s - and the world’s - top combined-event athletes for 2025.
Given all that, awarding her Athlete of the Year seems like recognising not just one great performance - but a season of remarkable, sustained excellence.
The significance beyond the medals
For Irish athletics, O’Connor’s success carries particular weight. Her World Championship silver marks a historic milestone: she is now among a very short list of Irish athletes to medal at a global outdoor championships - and brings multi-eventing back into the spotlight.
Moreover, her dominance in combined events underscores the value and potential of heptathlon/pentathlon within Ireland’s track-and-field to aspiring young athletes that versatility can be rewarded.
And on a personal level, balancing such high-level international success with off-track commitments (education, training cycles, recovery) makes her story all the more compelling: a testament to discipline, resilience and long-term ambition.
What this means for the road ahead
Winning Athlete of the Year and Field & Multi-Event Athlete of the Year isn’t just a reward for past performance - it’s a launchpad. The expectations will be high, but O’Connor now has the momentum, the confidence, and the proven ability to deliver under pressure.
If she builds on this season - staying healthy, refining her training, and bringing the same grit and versatility to upcoming international meets - there’s every reason to believe she’ll be a force in multi-event athletics for years to come.
