Nina Kennedy is hoping to win a pole vault gold medal at the Paris Olympics, and she doesn’t want to share it with anyone

Nina Kennedy, who is finally ready to fully support her actions, is not particularly kind in Paris.

Australia’s all-time greatest pole vaulter made headlines around the world last year when she and American star Katie Moon shared the gold medal after a nail-biting World Championship final in Budapest.

It was the pinnacle of sportsmanship, a moving moment of mutual recognition between two sports champions who were equally deserving of glory.

Kennedy doesn’t fully regret her decision to stand alongside Moon, and it will remain a defining moment of her career, even as the artist continues to soar to greater heights.

But it won’t happen again.

“I will definitely fight for that gold medal,” Kennedy told ABC Sport.

“That’s probably the question I’ve been asked the most since Budapest. There I felt it was right, I never questioned it, it was the right thing to do.

“Winning the gold medal definitely lit a fire inside me.”

Kennedy says she thinks about the prospect of winning Olympic gold every day. She is determined, confident and wants to be at her peak just before the Games.

She didn’t always have the freedom to act with such confidence. Kennedy has been an outspoken advocate for prioritizing mental health, openly sharing her struggles and potential remedies.

As she says, these difficult times influenced her decision to divide the gold in Budapest.

“I think (sharing the gold) was really a reflection of where I was in my career and how confident I was,” Kennedy said.

“Maybe last year I didn’t believe that I really deserved this gold medal.”

Kennedy certainly believes now.

What’s more, she has freed herself from the burden of her victories and defeats, which is a significant step forward in her mental preparation and allows her to get in the best possible mental frame of mind before leaving for Paris.

“I think the biggest mental health challenge I’ve faced, and I think a lot of athletes struggle with, is tying your self-worth to the outcome of your performance,” Kennedy said.

“You grow up your whole life winning competitions and you really start to associate winning with your worth. And it can get really blurry and really gray.

“I just learned to separate the two. I can win and still be a great person, I can lose and still be a great person.

“My family and friends will continue to love me, and they love me for who I am, not for what I do.”

It is a watershed moment for Kennedy, who has previously admitted that periods of depression prevented her from training and competing.

In previous years, she has been hampered by injuries and this affected her preparations for Tokyo, where she missed the final because “everything fell apart”.

Kennedy says she is a completely different athlete and person now than the one who suffered the disappointment of the Olympics. She prepares for the main event armed with a fresh perspective and a clear mental strategy.

“The goal is to win gold. If you ask me what my expectations are, they are a bit different,” she said.

“I like to break it down. Expectations are the things that are 100 percent in my control, what I’m going to do, what my team is going to do—the ‘controllable’ things.”

“And then the goals become, very often, uncontrollable.

“I could have jumped the highest, I could have jumped five meters and I could have been second, and that is completely out of my control. Someone jumped higher.

“I think it’s important to really know the difference between the two.”

Kennedy is calm, composed and cautious on the eve of the competition. But don’t mistake that for carelessness – few members of this Australian track and field team are as dedicated or reserved.

Pole vaulting is a death-defying discipline, perhaps the most spectacular in track and field. In pursuit of gold, Kennedy’s stated ambition is to soar higher and fly farther than anyone else in the world.

She feels like this is her time.

“People talk about a state of flow, and I feel like I’ve been in it since Budapest,” Kennedy said.

“That’s the only thing I was thinking about. I really made it clear to myself and my team that I didn’t want to leave with any regrets.

“I don’t want to miss anything, I want to go out on the pitch and take a risk.

“I’m really proud of where I come from, and now I can’t wait to see what happens.

“Hard work done, now it’s fun. I’m ready to rock and roll.”