Rexburg’s Hawkins makes up ground in final two events of heptathlon day one

SAINT-DENIS, France — After a forgettable showing in the high jump, local Olympian Chari Hawkins has made up ground on the three competitors ahead of her as she attempts to creep back into the top 20.

Hawkins found herself in fifth place following the 100-meter hurdles, in which she ran 13.16 seconds, earning 1,100 points. But a no-height finish in the high jump netted her zero points for the second event leaving her in 22nd place at the mid-day break Thursday at Stade de France.

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In a Facebook reel Hawkins posted Thursday morning in Paris, she says she is “overwhelmed with emotion” while walking the practice track at Stade de France.

“I have never in my life been so … excited to do a heptathlon before,” she said fighting back tears. … “The gratitude I feel is so overwhelming. Thank you for everybody who’s been part of my journey.”

She says in the video that she is going to take a moment to “soak this up” before beginning her warmups.

Following the break, Hawkins returned to the competition and immediately began to make up ground on the three women directly ahead of her in the overall standings.

She scored 770 points with a shot put of 13.64 meters, then tallied another 934 points, running the 200-meter sprint in 24.49 seconds. She has accrued 2,804 points through four of the seven events.

With each of her last two scores, Hawkins closed the gap Tori West (3,527), of Australia, Rita Nemes (3,547), of Hungary, and Kate O’Connor (3,596), of Ireland, each of whom she bested in both events.

Great Britain’s Kate Johnson-Thompson currently leads the 23-woman field, with a total score of 4,055. Americans Anna Hall (3,956) and Taliyah Brooks (3,810) are in third and seventh place, respectively.

The heptathlon will return to the Stade de France stage Friday at 2 a.m. (MT) for the final three events — long jump, javelin throw and 800-meter run.

EastIdahoNews.com will continue providing updates on Hawkins as the event continues and concludes.