Nina Kennedy wins gold in pole vault at world championships

Australia has a new athletics world champion after a stunning turn of events in Budapest.

Nina Kennedy won gold in Budapest. Picture: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

Nina Kennedy has become Australia’s first women’s pole vault world champion after US Olympic Katie Moon took up her offer to “share” the title in an epic jump-off in Budapest.

Both jumpers had cleared the same height of 4.90m, an Australian record for Kennedy, before they each failed to clear three attempts at 4.95m.

Kennedy then raised the idea with her competitor, who happily accepted, prompting an outflow of tears at the world championships.

“We were out there for such a long time, we were pushing each other to the absolute limit,“ Kennedy said.

“Katie is the world champion, she is the Olympic gold medallist, I didn’t think she would want to share it. I thought we might need to keep jumping.

“But I kind of looked at her and said, ‘Hey girl you maybe wanna share this?’ and the relief, you could see it on her face and you could see it on my face and it was mutual.

“Absolutely incredible to share a gold medal with Katie Moon. We have been friends for so long, so super special.“

Nina Kennedy and Katie Moon decided to share the gold medal. Picture: Steph Chambers/Getty Images

A proud Kennedy after her achievement. Picture: Andrej Isakovic / AFP

The act of kindness from Moon mirrored an unforgettable moment at the Tokyo Olympics when Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi and Qatar’s Mutaz Essa Barshim agreed to share the high-jump gold medal.

Moon, who embraced Kennedy after they made the decision, said she was “completely satisfied” with the result despite not thinking about sharing the gold medal.

“When the final started I didn’t think about how sharing a gold medal would work for me but now I am completely satisfied,” she said.

“What a battle it was, oh my … When it became obvious that only Nina and I were standing still, the show has just started. I think we both motivated each other.

Kennedy flies high in Budapest. Picture: Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

Kennedy raced over to find her coach Paul Burgess in the crowd as she joined Steve Hooker as a pole vault world champion, going better than the bronze medal she won at last year’s world championships in Eugene, Oregon.

“It is unbelievable. It’s a huge honour to share this gold with Katie. It shows that dreams really do come true,” Kennedy said.

“Last year I didn’t really believe that I belonged on the podium, but tonight I was going for gold and really, deep down, I believed in myself and came up with the goods.

“I have been planning the competition in my head for so many months now, it’s such a battle. Katie is the Olympic champion, she’s the world champion and she’s honestly one of the greatest in the sport, so to share it with her is an honour and a privilege and will mean that we’ll be connected forever.”

It was Australia‘s second medal of the championships, coming three days after Jemima Montag took the silver in the women’s 20km walk.