O'Connor 'never could have imagined' 2025 success

By any standards, 2025 has been a memorable and life-changing breakthrough year for multi-sport athlete Kate O'Connor.

The 25-year-old has been one of the success stories of Irish and Northern Irish sport over the past 12 months, her outstanding performances in track and field culminating in a remarkable silver medal in the heptathlon at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September.

The Newry native, who is based in Dundalk, also picked up a pentathlon silver medal at the World Indoor Championships in China, bronze in the same event at the European Indoors and became World University Games champion.

During a stellar year which saw her move dramatically up the world rankings an into second place, she also obliterated the Irish heptathlon and pentathlon national records and achieved a series of personal bests across the individual disciplines in which she competes.

"It's been insane. It's hard to put into words how different my life is now. It's very busy, but it was one of the most enjoyable times ever," reflected O'Connor in an interview with BBC Sport NI's Thomas Kane.

"I could never have predicted this all to happen. I know I've always put in a lot of work, but this year was just a completely different level.

"To win one medal was insane. To win two was crazy. And then to win two more after that, I just could never have imagined that would happen."

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Enjoying the moment and then refocusing

The Irish athlete was a silver medallist for Northern Ireland at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, then finished 13th at the following year's World Championships and 14th at the Olympics in Paris.

She says she will allow herself some time over the festive period to reflect on her seismic progress over recent months, before setting out her stall for 2026.

"It's been so enjoyable and at times I'm just looking forward to getting back into my routine and get back training for next year, but I've also got to realise that I did something special this year and just relish that and enjoy the moment.

"At the start of the year I hadn't set out to win four international medals, my aim was to win one international medal, but once I got on the roll I realised that it was doable.

"I didn't let anything stop me and that's probably one of the things I learnt this year, to never be small - be big, take up room, and know that you belong in these kind of places.

"My outlook on sport is different and my expectations of myself are different and for the rest of my athletics career I will strive to win medals. I'm not just there as a placeholder, I want to be the best."

O'Connor recorded five personal bests across the seven events in finishing runner-up at the Worlds in Tokyo, setting a new Irish national record of 6,714 points.

Earlier in the year she managed a new Irish indoor pentathlon record of 4,683 points at the Tallinn Combined Events meeting in Estonia and won the 800m and set four personal bests in coming in third at the European Indoors.

She says she wants to compete in athletics professionally for the next two Olympic cycles, with a gold medal her primary ambition.

"My ultimate goal is to get to the Olympics and to be on the podium and try to win a gold medal. I think if you're not imagining yourself doing that you're never going to get it.

"I'm going to work really hard until I get there. I fully believe that I can do it. Although I did great things this year, I know there is so much more there. I'm just going to continue building and see what else I can do."

'Keeping many doors open'

While proud of her achievements in 2025, O'Connor's thoughts are already turning to what awaits in the next 12 months.

The main highlights will be the World Indoors in March, then the Commonwealth Games and European Championships in the summer.

"I want to reflect and appreciate what I did, but then park it and move on to next year, because I always want more and to be striving forward," she explained.

O'Connor was speaking after graduating with a Masters degree in PR and Communications from the University of Ulster.

"It was tough. I did the degree part-time which obviously made it easier for me. It fitted in well with my training schedule, but it took a lot of organisation and a lot of half decent communication with my lecturers and we managed to navigate it pretty well.

"Something I learnt in 2024 was that it was really important for me to be Kate the athlete, but also Kate the person, and university has given me the chance to develop friendships and to develop me as a person.

"Sport is obviously such a huge part of my life but I'm also very aware that sport will end at some stage and I want to make sure I have as many doors open as possible for when that does happen."