Inside Katarina Johnson-Thompson's private life: from star athlete partner to family tragedy

Matthew Moore
·4 min read
Katarina Johnson-Thompson running
(JEWEL SAMAD)

Katarina Johnson-Thompson will be praying for Olympic glory at the Games this week as she competes in the heptathlon.

An Olympic gold medal is the only accolade that has eluded Katarina during her glittering sporting career and she is one of the medal favourites, having won gold at both the past two World Championships and Commonwealth Games.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson running alongside two other athletes
Katarina is a star athlete (Stephen Pond - British Athletics)

Off the track, the 31-year-old has battled family tragedies, with her father passing away in 2017 alongside several injuries that denied her grabbing an Olympic gold. However, the Olympian has also found joy, with Katarina dating her fellow athlete, Andrew Pozzi.

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Here's all you need to know about the athlete aiming for gold…

Early life

Katarina was born to Ricardo Thompson and Tracey Johnson, her father was a production assistant at the Bahamian broadcaster ZNS-TV, while Tracey was a former professional dancer.

Although born in Liverpool, Katarina spent the first year of her life in Nassau, the capital of the Bahamas, before moving to Halewood, enrolling in a local primary school, where she first became interested in athletics.

Katharina Johnson-Thompson sitting at an outside restaurant
Katarina became interested in athletics at a young age (Instagram)

During her school life, she grew close with Killing Eve star Jodie Comer, although they went their separate ways for university, with Katarina studying sports science at Liverpool John Moores University.

Career

Katarina first tasted gold in 2009 when she won the heptathlon at the World Youth Championships. The star would grab other gold medals in the long jump at 2012's World Junior Championships and in the heptathlon at 2013's European U23s Championships.

The athlete made her Olympics debut at the London 2012 Games, but ultimately only finished in 13th place. However, she recovered from this quickly, snatching the gold at the 2015 European Indoor Championships.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson jumping over a hurdle
The star first tasted gold in 2009 (Michael Steele)

Katarina once again featured in the roster for the 2016 Olympic Games and while she only finished sixth in the heptathlon, her high jump broke records and had she competed in that event, she would have won an Olympic gold.

Between Olympics, Katarina continued her dominance and has since obtained two gold medals in the Commonwealth Games and World Championships, while defending her title at the European Indoor Championships.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson collapsing following an injury
An injury shattered Katarina's hopes at the last Olympics (Christian Petersen)

Olympic glory would, however, continue to elude Katarina and she nearly failed to make the tournament after being injured at the start of the year. Although the star recovered and qualified, she suffered a torn calf muscle during the 200m portion of the heptathlon and was disqualified for coming out of her lane.

Family tragedy

In 2017, Katarina's father sadly passed away. However, the athlete used his passing as further encouragement, telling the Guardian in 2018: "I had a moment on Monday when I got home to Liverpool with my mum, where she got my three medals out. I am proud of myself because there have been some hard and difficult times.

"But dad definitely spurred me on this year. I wanted to start winning things. I wanted my family to see me doing well. And I think I have done that for sure."

Katarina Johnson-Thompson competing in the long jump
The loss of her father served as motivation for Katarina (Stephen Pond - British Athletics)

Ricardo was incredibly proud of his young girl, even though she grew up away from him. Speaking to the Mail in 2016, he beamed: "Seeing Katarina's success always gave me mixed emotions. I felt so happy but also sadness because I wanted to be there for her and I wasn't, so I just couldn't see it all.

"It's such an achievement for her and she's done it all by herself. Watching her collect the gold on that podium would be amazing."

Relationships

Katarina is currently in a relationship with fellow British athlete Andrew Pozzi. Andrew is a hurdler and has won gold at both the European and World Indoor Championships. Andrew has only competed at the Olympics once, back in 2012, but it was far from a fairytale with an injury ruining his chances.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson with Andrew Pozzi
Katarina is dating fellow athlete Andrew Pozzi (Instagram)

The couple have a long-distance relationship with Katarina residing in Loughborough while her partner lives in Cardiff. In an interview with the Observer, Katarina shared an insight into their relationship, saying: "We'll start a programme together and watch it at the same time. We've been watching Traitors. I don't think I'd make a good traitor. I can't lie to save my life."

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