Fortnight before winning world bronze, Kate O'Connor was struggling to walk

Earlier this month, Kate O'Connor developed an issued with her knee which meant she was struggling to walk. An Achilles tendon issued then followed

HIGH HOPES: It's a measure of how far Kate O'Connor's expectations for herself have risen that she was somewhat disappointed to leave the World Indoor Athletics Championship with just a bronze medal in the pentathlon. Pic: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile

Up until the last two weeks, it had been a dream preparation for Kate O’Connor, who smashed her personal bests in two events at the nationals at the start of March.

But a week after that, things started to go awry. First there was an issue with her knee, which she aggravated while doing a stride in training, and she was left with a nagging pain stemming from a defect in the cartilage. All of a sudden, it left her debilitated.