Hamish Kerr's bronze at the Indoor World Championships may have been significant for the sport in this country but for Keeley O’Hagan it was proof she'd made the right call.
The 28-year-old moved her life to Christchurch to join Kerr's training team and further her high jumping career after her promising start took a fall.
O’Hagan broke an age-group national record when she burst on to the scene as a teenager but with her performances came pressure which she said she struggled with.
“I fell into quite bad depression and had anxiety,” O’Hagan said.
“I did attempt to take my life as well at that stage when I was 17 so then I had some other health issues, went in and out of the sport.”
An eating disorder and chronic fatigue took hold soon after but despite the hurdles, O’Hagan has come out the other side 10 years later in the form of her life.
At the recent national track and field championships, O’Hagan won her third national title with a three-centimetre personal best of 1.88 metres – a Commonwealth Games B-standard.
“I just have a love for the sport again that I lost at times throughout my career.”
A key component to that newfound passion and form is her 2019 move to Christchurch to join Kerr and coach Terry Lomax's high performance squad..
“At the end of 2020, I jumped 1.85 and I was 12kg heavier than my lightest weight at that time and it was a huge moment for me to be like, ‘I can jump well when I'm healthy and I'm strong and I'm nourished in myself and my mind and my body’,” she said.
While the Otaki native admits the body is that of an older athlete these days, after so many wasted years she feels like things are only just taking off, for her and team-mate Kerr.
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