Double world champion and Olympic silver medallist withdraws from the big Hypomeeting this weekend in Austria
Katarina Johnson-Thompson has pulled out of the Götzis Hypomeeting this weekend in Austria due to a minor injury.
“I’m really gutted to share I’ve picked up an injury in training this week so won’t be competing in Götzis at the weekend,” she said.
“I was really looking forward to competing in my first heptathlon since Paris, especially at Götzis as the event is so special so it’s with a heavy heart that I’ve had to make this decision. Thankfully the injury is nothing serious and I’ll be back on the track shortly.”
She added: “Good luck to all the athletes competing in Gotzis, no doubt they you will put on another great weekend of combined events for all the fans that will be there!”
Despite this there are still strong fields for the 50th anniversary of the famous Hypomeeting.
British combined events athletes in action include Abi Pawlett in the heptathlon while Lewis Church, Sammy Ball and Jack Turner are in the decathlon in an event that is live streamed by Eurovision Sport.
Johnson-Thompson was due to face Anna Hall, the American who won impressively here in 2023 before undergoing knee surgery in the run-up to the Paris Olympics, where she finished fifth.
Other heptathlon contenders in Götzis include Xénia Krizsán of Hungary, the 2021 Götzis winner, plus Adrianna Sulek-Schubert of Poland, Annik Kalin of Switzerland and Sofie Dokter of the Netherlands.
Damian Warner leads the decathlon entries and is going for an incredible ninth victory in Götzis. Now aged 35, he failed to clear a height in the pole vault in the Olympics last year but will be hoping for better luck this weekend as he takes on world champion and fellow Canadian Pierce LaPage.
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Look out too for Sander Skotheim, the Norwegian who won European and world indoor titles earlier this year.
Olympic champion Markus Rooth, also of Norway, will not be in Götzis but the silver and bronze medallists from Paris last year, Leo Neugebauer of Germany and Lindon Victory of Grenada, will be competing.
Further contenders include 2019 world champion Niklas Kaul of Germany and last year’s world indoor gold medallist Simon Ehammer of Switzerland.
The event is live streamed via Eurovision Sport here.
