Keely’s the real deal! Hodgkinson stuns Tokyo trial rivals with late fightback to clinch 800m title

She was obscure at the start of the year and in a box at the beginning of the second lap, but Keely Hodgkinson is proving herself to be quite the finisher. By the end of this summer, she may even have an Olympic medal.

The 19-year-old talent went toe to toe with Jemma Reekie and Laura Muir on Sunday and outran the pair of them to win the national 800metres title. It was an astonishing performance, and a fine way to gatecrash the most anticipated race at the Olympic trials.

The story was meant to be about Muir’s ongoing battle with her younger training partner, who has won 12 of 14 races since the start of 2020, but Hodgkinson left them both in a daze and crossed in 1min 59.61sec.

Reekie was second, 0.51sec behind, and Muir was third. Those two excellent Scots will have a decent claim to a medal in Tokyo at this distance, Reekie in particular, but what to make of their English challengers?

Hodgkinson will be launched high in that reckoning now, given the way she took apart two athletes who were up for the fight and fit.

The Wigan teenager has already broken the world Under 20 record for the 800m in 2021 and won a gold at the European Indoor Championships. The latter win was enormously impressive, albeit the quality of the field was limited. No such disclaimer could be attached to this one.

There were no fewer than six women in the final who had gone under two minutes, and at the bell Hodgkinson was in a sticky spot.

Muir and Reekie were at the front and Hodgkinson was stuck in traffic in the second row, unable to escape left or right. She extricated herself and pulled off the victory with pure speed off the final bend.

‘It’s something I can’t put into words,’ said Hodgkinson.

‘I probably wasn’t favourite going into it but I was up there and it was an incredible feeling.’

She added: ‘I love being in this championship environment and feel I can perform under pressure. The pressure wasn’t on me today, I was a bit of an underdog but I enjoy being in the environment.

‘It’s something I thrive off, even being 19. It’s exciting putting myself up against the world’s best.’

That much was subsquently made clearer when, in the course of explaining more about her background, Hodgkinson discussed the athletes she has modelled herself on.

‘One of my favourites is Michael Jordan,’ she said. ‘I watched the documentary on Netflix (The Last Dance) and I just thought he had the mentality that he wants it so he’s going to go and get it. I like that.’

Muir and Reekie both talked Hodgkinson up as a potential medallist in Japan, with the three of them forming a formidable middle-distance trident.

Muir, whose strongest suit is the 1500m, said: ‘The strength in depth is amazing. You could argue this is the hardest 800m team in the world to make. It is very exciting.

‘For her age what Keely is doing is phenomenal. The postponement of the Games has done well for Keely and Jemma. It has given them extra time to develop.’

This is not a great era for British athletics in general, with medal contenders desperately thin on the ground ahead of tomorrow’s team announcement, but the middle distances could well pick up the slack.

The men’s 800m was fascinating, with Elliot Giles holding off the gifted pair of Oliver Dustin and Daniel Rowden. Each of those three could have a close look at the podium in Tokyo.

Giles, who won a photo-finish from Dustin in 1:45.11, said: ‘I knew a few months ago that whoever wins or comes top three in these championships has a very real chance of medalling at the Olympics, if not potentially being the winner.

‘We have guys running 1:43-1:44 now. The sky’s the limit. I don’t know if there is anyone better than us.’

Elsewhere, Adam Gemili won the men’s 200m and Jodie Williams completed a 200m and 400m golden double.