Ennis smashes British heptathlon record

Jessica Ennis answered her critics in resounding fashion yesterday by smashing the British heptathlon record of former Olympic champion Denise Lewis in Gotzis.

The 26-year-old can now turn her attention to copying Lewis by following a national record with Olympic gold on home soil at the London Games. “I don’t want to think about that yet, I just need to enjoy this moment and stay focused,” a delighted Ennis said. “I know I am in great shape and that I can build on it now. I’m so happy, I’m over the moon. The record is something that’s been at the back of my mind and I wanted to achieve but I didn’t want to put too much pressure on it. Now I have the record I am very very pleased.”

Ennis arrived in Austria to find herself bizarrely labelled “fat” by a senior figure at UK Athletics and having lost both her world titles in the space of seven months. But the Sheffield athlete hit back in brilliant style to record a third straight win at the Hypo Meeting with a new personal best of 6,906 points.

That was 75 more than the previous record of 6,831 set by Lewis in 2000, shortly before she won Olympic gold in Sydney.