What a year it has been in the life of heptathlete Kate O'Connor.
Spring into summer brought European and World Indoor success, before a gold medal outdoors at the World University Games.
There was clearly a progression from O'Connor's 14th place at the Paris Olympics.
That upward trajectory continued amid the humidity inside Tokyo's National Stadium at the World Championships. Five PBs helped in no small way in propelling the Dundalk athlete to a silver medal, so becoming the first Irish woman to medal at a major championships in a multi-discipline sport.
A day on and it's a case of still processing what has happened.
A sit-down interview with RTÉ Sport's David Gillick was an opportunity to put the pieces together.
"I have these moments of 'gosh, did that just happen?'," said O'Connor, a comment that belies a rather composed demeanour.
"Then I find myself going with the whirlwind of things, going through the emotions and then back to 'gosh'. It will take me a little while to actually process what just happened.
"I'm still in my own little bubble. It's nice to hear that everybody at home has enjoyed what I've done and the hard work we've put in. I hope I've inspired some younger kids to go out and hopefully win more medals for Ireland in the future."
In attempting to delve deeper into what aided O'Connor on her path to that podium finish, she was quick to heap praise on her coaching team, led by her father Michael.
A relationship where trust is key.
"The team I have around me are so tight-knit and what makes it really special is that they really care for me as a person not just as an athlete," she explained.
"When they tell me things that I believe I can do I fully trust them. In athletics and especially in multi-events I put a lot of trust in my team. When they tell me to do something I trust that they are telling me to do the right things.
"I'm so lucky with the team that I have around me. I wouldn't have won this medal or the medals I've won this year without a team like that. We are tight-knot group."
The heptathlon event in Tokyo took place over two days, with the majority of the seven events ran off in a quick-fire manner.
No time to hang around then.
"The timetable is insane," was O'Connor's summation.
"When I was looking at it beforehand I thought that this was going to be great, it was just like a training day, where I would go from one to the next. But then you realise when you come in from an event you literally have one minute to get your spikes, get back to the call-room to get back out.
"That was insane; I came back in a couple of times and had tight a hip after the high jump. I literally had 30 seconds and then we were shouted at to leave. That was madness; no time to go to the toilet. It was a tough timetable but at the same time everybody was in the same boat.
"You have to go with the flow but it's something the multi-eventers are very good at it. We're quite good at when things are being thrown at us and just dealing with it."
Before the concluding 800m, word was coming through from Tokyo that O'Connor had sustained a knee injury. We were unaware as to the nature of the injury but relieved that the 24-year-old was amongst the starters for the two-lap conclusion on the track.
Post-race we learned that the scare emanated from O'Connor's efforts in the long jump.
"I felt a cold feeling around my kneecap," she revealed.
"I hobbled back to where my bag was, sat down, and as I was sitting down the bend in the knee, I just felt a really sharp pain.
"And standing up I also felt the sharp pain.
"I went back to rest area and there was the thought of not wanting many people to know, as there was still a long way to go in the competition."
That said, there was no panic.
"I was in a lovely position before the 800. It's rare that you get to go in a race, where Kat (Katarina Johnson-Thompson) had to beat me by 12 seconds and Taliyah Brooks had to beat my by six. I had beaten Taliyah before and my job was not to let get 12 seconds in front of me, that's 100 metres, and I was never going to let that happen.
"It was more a case of how we can get around the race as safely as possible. I've never been in a race with that amount of girls before and there was a bit of bumping and barging. When that started happening I though I don't need to fight here and I just chilled. It did not feel like a PB kind of race.
"When I crossed the line and my time came up, I just could not believe it. It was a more of a following kind of race and I wanted to make sure I got around safely."
In summing up 2025, Ireland's sixth World Championship medallist says "I've had the year of my dreams. If somebody offered half of what I've done this year I would have snatched it with both hands. To come away with four major medals, it's madness."
Kate O'Connor - World Championships silver medallist! A moment to truly savour for the Dundalk heptathlete, who has written herself into Irish sporting folklore 🇮🇪 🥈 #RTEsport #WorldAthleticsChamps pic.twitter.com/xnK7evfLvr
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) September 21, 2025
A lot done and a lot more O'Connor wants to do.
"I don't want to set any limits, that something I said at the start of the year. Don't think you got to stop anywhere. I think I'm only getting started; I believe I have a lot more progression to make."
