Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson has fulfilled what she described as her ”destiny,” obliterating the world indoor 800m record in Lievin, France.
The 23-year-old, from Wigan, clocked a sensational 1:54.87, becoming the first woman in history to run a sub-1:55 indoors.
The performance wiped out the previous record of 1:55.82 set by Slovenia’s Jolanda Ceplak in 2002 on the day Hodgkinson was born.
Following a clinical opening 400m of 55.56 seconds behind pacemaker Anna Gryc, Hodgkinson surged solo for the final two laps.
Despite the pressure of a vocal crowd and high expectations, she maintained her form to finish nearly a second clear of the old mark.
Speaking to World Athletics and European Athletics after the race, Hodgkinson said: ”Thank god! that was really fun. I’ve been looking forward to this for a few weeks.
“I knew I was in much better shape than a 1:55.
”I didn’t just want to break the record, I absolutely wanted to smash it.”
The victory marks a triumphant return to fitness for the Atherton-born star after an injury plagued 2025.
She now heads to the World Indoor Championships in Torun as the heavy favourite to add another gold to her Olympic and European titles.
(Featured image – Erik van Leeuwen)
