I asked Sam Fariss to write this tribute to Anna Hall and her super heptathlon in Budapest. I think that she did a pretty awesome job.
At the start of day two, Hall had bandages on her left leg, but there had been no announcement from her nor her camp about an injury to the 22-year-old star. Despite questions in the air, she attacked the long jump competition but fell short of a top spot.
KJT, Anna Hall, World Athletics Championships
Budapest, Hungary
August 19-27, 2023, photo by Kevin Morris
Hall finished with a best jump of 6.19 meters, far from her best. This seemed to be a sign of the tide changing as Johnson-Thompson clinched first in the event with a jump of 6.54 meters to collect 1020 points and push her into 1st place overall.
The penultimate event was the javelin throw, a weak point for both Hall and Johnson-Thompson. The young American earned tenth with a throw of 44.88 meters, her season best, while the British veteran placed seventh. Johnson-Thompson, in 1st place, now led Hall, who had fallen to third, by 43 points with just one event remaining.
KJT and Anna Hall, World Athletics Championships
Budapest, Hungary
August 19-27, 2023, photo by Kevin Morris
Commentators called Hall a shark in the 800 meters, but she needed to beat Johnson-Thompson by at least 3 seconds, quite a margin for the middle-distance event. Hall took off strong and never looked back, maintaining a gap between herself and the rest of the field. However, she was only able to beat Johnson-Thompson by 1.54 seconds, despite running a championship record.
At the end of the seven events, Hall brought home a silver medal, a slight upgrade (as she called it) from her bronze at the 2022 world champs. Johnson-Thompson stood atop the podium, collecting a total of 6740 points.
Anna Hall, World Athletics Championships
Budapest, Hungary
August 19-27, 2023, photo by Kevin Morris
Hall joins Joyner-Kersee as the only two Americans to have medaled at multiple World Athletics Championships in the heptathlon.
“She’s just been so awesome, so supportive,” Hall said of her relationship with Joyner-Kersee. “I got to talk to her a little bit before the meet, even opened up to her a little bit about being banged up coming in, and she was like, ‘Just tough it out, keep going and keep fighting.’ Really awesome to have her encouragement.”
Following the conclusion of her competition, Hall shared that she suffered a PCL knee injury and bone bruise on July 17th during a training accident. She kept the rehab process to herself and her team leading up to the world championships but said there were times she wasn’t sure she would even travel to Budapest.
Anna Hall, World Athletics Championships
Budapest, Hungary
August 19-27, 2023, photo by Kevin Morris
“Having had what feels like the weight of the world on your shoulders when you know you’re not 100% healthy and nobody knows that, it’s not easy,” Hall said. “I’m proud of the way I handled that and just kept fighting.”
