Katie Moon Retains Flying, Even When It’s Exhausting, by Deji Ogeyingbo
At 34, Olympic champion Katie Moon finds herself as soon as once more making ready for an additional trial, one other staff, one other probability to win gold. However this time, every part feels slightly totally different.
She nonetheless trains beneath the watchful eye of longtime coach Brad Walker, although now from a distance. Moon has settled into life in Tulsa, the place she lives and works full-time alongside her husband, Hugo. Their life is quieter now, however the bar stays excessive. Walker nonetheless writes her coaching plans, and he or she executes them with the identical self-discipline that introduced her gold in Tokyo, back-to-back world titles, and a silver medal in Paris this summer season.
Moon is among the best pole vaulters of her era. Her Olympic title in 2021 got here with a 4.90-meter vault, and he or she has continued to ship ever since. She received the Diamond League Closing, then claimed the 2022 world title. In 2023, she defended it with a shared gold alongside Australia’s Nina Kennedy, displaying that her consistency had change into a trademark.
Even in a season stuffed with damage and doubt, Moon doesn’t quit. After battling Achilles bother and a grueling schedule, she nonetheless managed to take silver in Paris in 2024. “I’m completely going by way of this yr,” she mentioned lately. “The tentative purpose is that I might like to be at a house Olympics in 2028, however I simply don’t know what my physique will really feel like.”
Moon’s summer season competitors schedule has proven her high quality, even when it hasn’t made headlines the best way an Olympic medal does. She opened her out of doors marketing campaign with a 4.63m clearance in Doha in Might. Then got here three straight wins, all at 4.73m, in Rabat, Paris, and Chula Vista. Her better of the season got here indoors, with 4.83m at conferences in each New York and Liévin.
She has stayed inside herself and stayed near the highest. Most lately, she jumped 4.73m in London, ok for second behind Olivia McTaggart, and confirmed that even when she’s not feeling excellent, she’s nonetheless among the many finest.
Moon speaks plainly about the place she’s at in her profession. She has executed virtually every part within the sport, however she nonetheless finds which means within the day-to-day grind. Her love for pole vault began younger and stays tied to a sense greater than an consequence.
“This sport is tough sufficient as it’s,” she mentioned. “Should you’re not having fun with it, on the core of it, then it’s too tough to place your self by way of every part.”
What makes Moon’s present path fascinating is just not solely her endurance however her choice to remain grounded. There’s no sense of drama, no declarations of farewell or legacy. She trains. She competes. She checks in along with her coach. She returns dwelling. She carries on.
With the World Championships arising in September, Moon will line up as soon as extra on the U.S. Trials, trying to make the staff and defend her title for a 3rd time. It’s value noting she has a bye and doesn’t have to indicate up. There’s no assure her physique will cooperate, and he or she is aware of that. However the chance continues to be value chasing.
Even when she wakes up feeling flat, like she did on the Paris Olympic closing, she finds one thing to carry onto. “I awakened not feeling very nicely, only a headache, and I felt like my nervous system was slightly flat,” she mentioned. “However I simply tried to remain centered. That is the Olympics.”
That mindset has carried her farther than most. She doesn’t must reinvent herself or show something. She’s doing what she’s at all times executed: placing within the work, displaying up, and letting the long run unfold, one leap at a time.
