American and Australian Pole Vaulters Agree to Share Gold Medal After Exhaustive Playoff
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For many athletes, a gold medal represents the ultimate professional goal. After all, who wouldn't want to be named the best at their sport? Well, for two pole vaulters, sharing the glory means more than being named the sole winner. Katie Moon, from the U.S., and Nina Kennedy, from Australia, agreed to split the gold medal at the World Athletics Championship—a competition only second to the Olympics.
After tying in the initial finals, Moon and Kennedy had to go into playoff rounds. Three jumps went by and they both passed the 4.90 bar but then failed to get themselves over the 4.95 height. Aware of how grueling the tie-breaking process was for both of them, Moon came up with an idea. The incumbent champion approached Kennedy and offered to share the medal.
According to Moon, the pole vault is not an endurance event. “We have a short window of jumps. Once the fatigue sets in, it not only becomes more difficult, but dangerous,” she wrote on Instagram. “To walk away healthy and with a gold medal, while celebrating with my friend that had jumped just as well, was a no-brainer.”
Agreeing with the idea, Kennedy broke down in tears before Moon gave her a congratulatory kiss and hugged her. “I didn’t think she’d want to share it, I thought we might have had to keep jumping,” Kennedy said according to Olympics.com. “But, you know, I kind of looked at her and said, ‘Hey, girl, you maybe wanna share this?'”
On top of excitement for their shared victory, they also felt a lot of peace, as they had been friends for many years. “The relief on her face—and you could see it on my face—was mutual,” Kennedy continued. “And yeah, absolutely incredible to share a medal with Katie Moon. You know, we’ve been friends for so long so it’s super special.”
Moon won the World Championship in 2022, where Kennedy got the bronze medal. As such, the shared title is Moon's second championship, and Kennedy's first. Their decision is also one for the books, as it is the first joint gold medal in World Athletic Championships.
Now, not only do both athletes have a gold medal, but they've deepened their bond. Moon playfully wrote on Instagram: “Did we just become best friends?” However, for her, this was simply the right thing to do. “I'm at a point where I've just given it my all,” said Moon. “We went out and we both did pretty much the same thing and it just felt right. We both won today so it was the right call!”
After some grueling playoff rounds, pole vaulters Katie Moon and Nina Kennedy agreed to split the gold medal at the World Athletics Championship.
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This is Moon's second World Championship and Kennedy's first.
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“We went out and we both did pretty much the same thing and it just felt right. We both won today so it was the right call!” said Moon.
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Katie Moon: Instagram
Nina Kennedy: Instagram
h/t: [People]
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