Kate O’Connor is back in Ireland following her historic silver medal at the World Athletics Championship in Tokyo.

Ms O’Connor was greeted by family and friends as she arrived in Dublin Airport.

The 24-year-old had initially planned to stay in Japan for another few weeks, but decided to cut her trip short to return home and recover from a knee injury she sustained while competing in the long jump.

24 September 2025; Kate O'Connor of Ireland is greeted by her grandmother Madeline at Dublin Airport following her return from the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile
Kate O’Connor with her grandmother Madeline at Dublin Airport

24 September 2025; Kate O'Connor of Ireland poses with her heptathlon silver medal at Dublin Airport following her return from the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan. Photo by Seb Daly/Sportsfile

She is the first Irish women to win a medal at a major championship in a multi-discipline event.

She is the sixth World medallist for Ireland, following Eamonn Coghlan (gold, 1500m, 1983), Sonia O’Sullivan (gold, 5000m, 1995 and silver, 1500m, 1993), Gillian O’Sullivan (silver, 20km walk, 2003), Olive Loughnane (silver, 20km walk, 2009) and Rob Heffernan (gold, 50km walk, 2013).