In a spectacular performance during the 2026 Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais in Liévin, France, Keely Hodgkinson set a new personal best and world record in the 800 metre event. She clocked an indoor world record of 1:54.87.
Hodgkinson came back Sunday with a new personal best in the 400 metre event, recording a 51.49.
The indoor sprint took place at Emirates Arena in Glasgow, lowering her previous indoor PB of 52.42. The run is faster than her outdoor best of 51.61.
She is preparing for what will be her first appearance at the World Indoor Championships. Hodgkinson is now looking to make the British 4x400m Relay Team in Toruń, despite the relay final taking place just 45 minutes after the women’s 800 metre final on the last day of competition in Poland.
Hodgkinson will be aiming for the outdoor 800 metre record this spring or summer, which is currently 1:53.28, set by Czechoslovakia’s Jarmila Kratochvílová in Munich on July 26, 1983. It is the longest-standing record in athletics. It is long suspected of being dirty.
Hodgkinson, who turned 24 yesterday, currently holds the British record at 1:54.61 for outdoors. She also holds the British and European best-known times over 600m indoors and outdoors, respectively.
After finishing second several times at global events, Hodgkinson finally struck gold in the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Her run of silver medals started at the 2021 Tokyo Olympic Games, where she finished behind American Athing Mu. She continued being a bridesmaid at the 2022 Eugene and 2023 Budapest World Athletics Championships as well as the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
She has won at least nine Diamond League events in a row, two European Championships and two European Indoor Championships.
Hodgkinson has been trying to improve her 400m best for several years, but the opportunity has not always been there. Her early rival was Athing Mu of the US, who won gold in the 800 metres during the Tokyo Olympics, and holds a U20 North American record of 49.57. It is anyone’s guess if Mu will return to racing at a high level after changing her coach twice in less than two years.
However, new on the scene is Dutch 400 metre and 400 metre sensation is Femke Bol, who has moved up to the 800 metres, clocking a professional debut at the distance indoors last month in 1:59.07. While the performance does not seem competitive in comparison to Hodgkinson’s best, not only was it a debut, but she has created intrigue in the event after the rivalry with Mu has waned.
