The 27-year-old came from Perth to Paris, via meets around Europe, in great form and with a steely determination and belief that she could win Olympic gold. 

She jumped a season’s best of 4.90m to become the first Australian woman to win gold in a field event, handling the challenges of a drawn-out competition and equipment issues. Nina was focused and no competitor or event delay was going to derail her campaign. 

American defending champion Katie Moon, 33, who famously decided with Nina to share the 2023 world crown, jumped a season’s best 4.85m to win the silver while Canadian Alysha Newman jumped a national record of 4.85m for the bronze. 

That world championship final, where both Nina and Katie cleared 4.90m, amplified Nina’s desire for Olympic gold.

“I have genuinely thought about this night every single day since those Budapest world championships, the night I finished Budapest, equal gold,” Nina said.

“You know, sharing with Katie will go down in history as one of my favourite competitions ever. But it really, really just ignited this self-belief in me.”

It was a thrilling and strong competition where five women jumped over 4.80m. 

“I think what's so special about an Olympics, it happens every four years,” she said

“And we have known this date, it has been in my calendar for so long to the hour, to the minute, to the absolute second. 

“You have to piece it all together. And that's what I did and I'm just so proud of myself and my team and yeah, you could definitely kind of see all the emotions come out of me.”

It was a marathon competition of over three hours, with 19 competitors, a big delay with an equipment failure on vault, plus the deafening 80,000 strong crowd. But Nina was ready for it all.

“I hate to say this, but I haven't come this far just to come this far, throw anything at me, and I will handle it. 

“And what I was kind of thinking is, I have gone this long handling setbacks, handling pressure, handling everything. Like, just bring it on at this point. I'll handle it.”

There was a large group of Nina supporters in the stadium which made it even more special.

“I am just overwhelmed with the love and support.

“Being from Australia, there was no one in Budapest, there was no one at Oregon world championships (in 2022) except for my mum.

“So to come here and just look in the crowd and see 20 to 30 of my friends and family and just people that I've known over life is so special, so overwhelming.

“And it was just nice to look into the stadium. It gave me peace, it gave me calm, and it just gave me this energy and this belief that I could do that.”

After Budapest Nina focused on gold in Paris. Now she has achieved that she is already starting to think about challenging the Yelena Isinbayeva’s 5.06m world record. 

“I don't know if anybody watched my competition at the London Diamond League, but I had really, really good attempts at 95,” she said.

“And that was probably the first time that I thought to myself, maybe the world record is possible. So tonight was about winning the goal.

“I'm still quite young in the scheme of things, so maybe in the next few years that world record will be on the cards here.”

Nina also joins her idol Steve Hooker as an Australian Olympic gold medallist in this event. 

“You know, Steve is genuinely the reason why I got into the sport. 

“I was 11 at the time that he won that medal in Beijing. I watched that and very soon after that, that's when I started pole vault.

“So Steve is an icon and yeah, I'm happy to follow in his footsteps.”

Nina was only three when Tatiana Grigorieva won silver when the women’s event made its Olympic debut at Sydney 2000. In the 1990s Emma George took the event to new heights, claiming a world record.

And now Nina has been etched in history as Australia’s next pole vault trailblazer.

Andrew Reid