Four years after taking gold in the heptathlon, Great Britain’s Jessica Ennis-Hill fell 35 points short of becoming the first repeat gold medalist in the event since Jackie Joyner-Kersee in 1988 and 1992.
The winner was Belgium’s Nafissatou Thiam, who amassed a total of 6810 points to Ennis-Hill’s 6775 and set a national record with that score. Ennis-Hill took silver, Great Britain’s seventh heptathlon medal and the nation’s first silver in the event since 1964. Taking bronze was Canada’s Brianne Thiesen-Eaton, the wife of American decathlete Ashton Eaton, who finished with a total of 6653 points.
Thiesen-Eaton’s medal is the first ever in the heptathlon for Canada, while Thiam’s gold is Belgium’s first in the event.
Three Americans competed in the heptathlon, with none finishing better than 12th. Barbara Nwaba finished 12th with a total of 6309 points, with Kendell Williams (6221 points) finishing 17th and Heather Miller-Koch (6213 points) 18th.