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The women's 800m at the Paris Olympic Games would have witnessed a new champion being crowned as Keely Hodgkinson's coach has revealed why she had doubts about the 22-year-old being in the right state to compete at the Olympics.
A new Olympic champion in the women’s 800m might have been crowned because, at some point, Keely Hodgkinson’s management and coaches thought she would not make it to Paris.
In an interview with Athletics Weekly, Jenny Meadows, the co-founder of the Manchester-based M11 Track Club noted that they were a bit worried about the Briton’s form as she built up for the Paris Olympic Games.
Before the Olympic Games, Meadows explained that Hodgkinson looked fit but she did not compete in a way that impressed the team, placing them in a pool of worry. The former athlete noted that Hodgkinson struggled to make an impact in one of her particular training sessions and having worked with her for five years, Meadows was shocked.
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“She was fit but not running fit. We can laugh and joke about this now but, in January, there was a point where we worried: ‘Is she going to be in Paris?’. There’s a particular hill session that comes to mind. I’ve known Keely for five years now and I never thought she could be so bad! Erin was destroying her on the hill,” Meadows said.
“I’ve never seen Keely struggle that much before. I didn’t know that she could be that far behind me. I was laughing with her about it because it was so bad. I couldn’t believe it even happened,” she added.
However, Hodgkinson defied all odds, racing in her first 800m race of the season at the Prefontaine Classic, beating world champion Mary Moraa to second place. She was fresh from setting a 400m personal best time at the 13th Savona International Meeting.
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The 22-year-old then proceeded to defend her European title at the European Athletics Championships before competing at the UK Athletics Championships. The world 800m bronze medallist then won the 800m at the FBK Games in Hengelo and the Diamond League Meeting in London before throwing down the gauntlet at the Paris Olympic Games.
She was forced to end her season after the Paris Olympics due to a slight injury, but Hodgkinson has certainly enjoyed an amazing 2024 season.
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