We taught


thlon star Katarina Johnson-Thompson


Katarina Johnson Thompson may be the current world heptathlon champion - but she started life at St Julie’s Catholic School in Liverpool.


As she gears up for taking part in the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics this year, Kat has been quick to recognize the roll her school and teachers played in her success – a view shared by staff.


Former PE teacher Jo Hardiman played a huge role in Kat’s early progress while deputy headteacher Corin Willis insists: “She was an absolute pleasure to have in my form. She genuinely was.


“What you see now when she’s interviewed on TV, her modesty, her humility, her good grace and manners, this is how she was in school.


“Everyone was aware that she had this fantastic talent but Katarina would almost be quite shy, quite embarrassed, if she was put in the spotlight. I’m very fortunate to have worked with her.”


Here Jo Walls, head of PE at St Julie’s, and Jo Hardiman recall


their time at school with Kat.


How much of an all-round sportsperson was she?


Kat always had a passion for athletics. She was an amazing high jumper, her height being a big advantage to her. Kat was always a team player and shared her skills and expertise with lower school children.


What was it about her that first made them stand out?


Kat was a humble pupil, quite shy but always showed


determination to succeed. She was part of the Harriers as well as our school team.


How determined was she to succeed?


She was very determined and committed to being the best she could be. She overcame great obstacles to continue with her training. Her and her mum used public transport to get from Halewood to Wavertree for training and as she matured this was most days.


How easy was she to coach?


Kat was extremely easy to train. She wanted to improve so worked hard to achieve it.


What difference or influence did you make to her game?


I like to think we influenced her to participate in more events. We needed a hurdler for the English Schools competition and she was used for that (she was tall and flexible). She wasn’t very keen but she had no option as in that competition they had to do both a track and a field event. She did it as she was a team player. Kat sent a wonderful personal retirement video to Jo saying a massive thank you for all her hard work and support.


Can you recall a particularly memorable school event in which she was involved?


English Schools competitions were always the highlight. She had amazing focus and the national finals were the highlight. The funniest event was when she was in year 10 and she begged us not to make her run in a league cross country race in Clarke’s Gardens. Obviously she did though. It was really muddy and I was beginning to get worried as much less talented runners had come through. I went off to look for them when they came running through, laughing together, I think they had rolled in the mud and they had used the mud as face paint. They claimed they had slipped!


She had a great sense of humour.


What's your over-riding memory of her?


My overriding memory is her love of what she was doing. She was serious about what she wanted to do and didn’t want to waste her talent. Her challenges made her stronger. She found it very difficult to move away from home to change coach to live in France, but she knew it was a sacrifice she had to make if she was to achieve her dream. I watched her do a personal best in her first event in the World Championships. In her interview prior to the event, she said she was always honest about her weaknesses but she said she always set her self targets to do her personal bests. She said she concentrated on herself and is happy if she knows she has been the best she can be. She didn’t always believe in herself and has worked hard on rebuilding herself emotionally and has greater belief in herself. She accepts that she can perform really well, not make any mistakes, but still not win, but is happy knowing that she has done her absolute best.


Issue No.81 January/February/March 2021 SCHOOL SPORT


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