After more than a year away from competitive action, Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson is set to headline the women’s 800m at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, marking one of the most anticipated comebacks of the season.
Hodgkinson had not raced for 376 days before returning to the track at the Diamond League meeting in Silesia, her first outing since storming to Olympic gold in Paris. Any doubts about her fitness following three hamstring tears in just nine months were quickly erased as she clocked a world-leading 1:54.74 to win. Four days later, she backed it up with another victory in Lausanne, cementing her position as the woman to beat.
That time in Silesia placed her more than a second clear at the top of this year’s world list and ranked as the ninth-fastest performance in history. The expectation now is that she may threaten her personal best of 1:54.61 in Tokyo, though her primary focus remains capturing another global gold.
Training Partners Turn Rivals
Hodgkinson won’t be alone in the hunt. Her training partner Georgia Hunter Bell, also guided by Trevor Painter and Jenny Meadows, has committed to the 800m over the 1500m despite winning Olympic bronze over the longer distance.
Hunter Bell, the third-fastest woman in the world this year, showed her intent in Stockholm, where she produced a blistering final kick to beat reigning world champion Mary Moraa. While Faith Kipyegon’s dominance has made the 1500m almost untouchable, Hunter Bell believes the shorter distance offers more opportunity.
“I feel like in the 800m, if you make the final, anything can happen,” she said recently as quoted by World Athletics News.
Her resurgence is particularly remarkable given she quit the sport in 2017 due to injuries, only returning during the Covid-19 pandemic before quickly rising into world-class contention.
Global Threats to British Hopes
The British duo’s ambitions of a 1-2 finish face stiff competition. Switzerland’s Audrey Werro, the European U23 champion, sits second on the world list with a PB of 1:55.91, having beaten Hunter Bell at the Diamond League Final.
South Africa’s Prudence Sekgodiso, who won the World Indoor title in March, continues to impress with consistent sub-1:58 runs, while Ethiopia’s Tsige Duguma, the 2024 world indoor champion, remains a threat despite a quiet second half of the season after clocking a national record of 1:56.64.
Kenya will pin hopes on Mary Moraa, though her current season has been underwhelming compared to her 2022–23 peak. Her compatriot Lilian Odira looks sharper, finishing second to Hodgkinson in Silesia. Botswana’s Oratile Nowe (1:56.76 NR) and France’s Anais Bourgoin, the European bronze medallist, are also capable of upsetting the form book.
Anything Can Happen
The women’s 800m has long been one of the most unpredictable events in athletics, and Tokyo promises no less. Hodgkinson may arrive as the clear favorite, but with a talented field that includes seasoned champions and rising stars, the battle for medals remains wide open.
All eyes will be on Keely Hodgkinson as she chases another golden moment in Tokyo.
