Hodgkinson in sparkling track return one year after Olympic 800m gold
Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson made a triumphant return to action on Saturday as she ran a world-leading time in her first 800m since winning gold at the Paris Games last year.
⭐️ Keely is BACK ⭐️
— British Athletics (@BritAthletics) August 16, 2025
376 days away, no stress 😤
Keely Hodgkinson clocks a time of 1:54.74 in the women's 800m for a new meeting record and world lead.#SilesiaDL | @keelyhodgkinson pic.twitter.com/o2yTGAEukm
The 23-year-old Briton showed no sign of the lingering hamstring problems that had sidelined her for months as she clocked a meet record of 1min 54.74sec in hot and humid conditions in the Polish city of Chorzow.
"That was so much fun," said Hodgkinson, who had described her comeback race at the Silesia Diamond League meet as a vital "stepping stone" to the September 13-21 world championships in Tokyo.
"It's amazing, I really wanted to have this opportunity, I don't have much time to get ready for the worlds, so I have to put something down," she added.
Dutch pacemaker Lisanne de Witte set the rhythm for what organisers had hoped would be a 1:54.50 race, and Hodgkinson led the chasing pack through 400m in 56.09sec.
1:54.75!!!🤯🤯🔥
— Track & Field Gazette (@TrackGazette) August 16, 2025
World Lead ☑️
Meet Record ☑️
In her first race since she won Olympic GOLD in Paris, Keely Hodgkinson 🇬🇧 returned with a bang, storming to a Meet Record of 1:54.75 to win the women's 800m in Silesia!
Lillian Odira 🇰🇪 ran a PB of 1:56.52, while Oratile Nowe 🇧🇼… pic.twitter.com/6lW7j5R7sw
Chased by Kenya's Liliane Odira, the Briton looked comfortable as she pulled away solo for the final 300 metres, pushing herself down the home straight for a fine win.
The victory marks the end of a long road back from injury for Hodgkinson.
She was forced to withdraw from an event in February that bore her name – the Keely Klassic, at which she had intended to make a tilt at the long-standing world indoor 800m world record.
Hodgkinson then pulled out of last month's Diamond League meet in London.
She is now expected to go head-to-head with training partner Georgia Hunter Bell, the Olympic 1500m bronze medallist, over 800m at the Lausanne Diamond League next week.
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