Hodgkinson makes winning start to world title bid

Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson, a British Olympian, jumped out to the semi-finals of the women’s 800-meter race in Tokyo as a first-place finisher.

Hodgkinson is the gold-medal favorite despite having to wait 376 days to make a competitive return following last summer’s Games, where she set a world-leading time when she returned to action in August.

She came away with back-to-back victories in her only two pre-championship races in August after two hamstring tears.

The 23-year-old controlled her heat to reach Friday’s semi-finals, returning to the stadium where she won Olympic silver as a teenager four years ago.

Training partner Georgia Hunter Bell will accompany her there as they attempt to score a stunning British one-two.

“The rounds are awful, they feel awful, and I don’t like them.” I just wanted to be back inside the stadium very much. Hodgkinson told BBC Sport, “It’s so nice to be here.

Although it wasn’t particularly dominant or pretty, it’s nice to be safe through. It’s been a long week of waiting. Thank you for the 800-meter finish.

I once didn’t even know if I would be here; I’ve just been looking forward to leaving. It undoubtedly means a lot, and I’m hoping it will help me every step of the way.

Hodgkinson won her heat by more than five seconds, breaking her British record by one minute and 59.79 seconds.

Hunter Bell, an Olympic 1500m bronze medalist who switched to the shorter of the middle-distance events to compete for a second-place finish, also won, clocking in at 1: 58.82.

It felt like Christmas morning was getting out on track because we have been away in Japan for a while.

The decision to complete the 800-meter is wise. I think I have a lot of good things to show off; I have a high ranking, and this was the year to do it with my team-mate.

Kenya’s reigning champion Mary Moraa, Ethiopia’s Tsige Duguma, and Swiss Olympian Audrey Werro are all still in danger of winning gold medals.

American hurdles star Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone almost broke a 40-year record by winning the women’s 400-meter final, where Great Britain’s Amber Anning placed fifth.

By breaking Sanya Richards-Ross’ United States record in the semi-finals, McLaughlin-Levrone, a two-time Olympic and world 400m hurdles champion, suggested that she could challenge German Marita Koch’s controversial 1985 record of 47.60 seconds.

The 26-year-old 400-meter hurdles record holder ran the fastest 400-meter flat time in history with a 47.78 in the wet conditions at Japan’s National Stadium.

Zharnel Hughes, Dina Asher-Smith, and Amy Hunt, all from Great Britain, made it to the 200-meter finals.

After missing the 100-meter final after winning bronze in 2023, Hughes moved up to the medal race, passing Noah Lyles, who had previously defending his title three times, in 19.95 seconds.

In his preferred event, Lyles delivered a powerful performance. The American did not ease up and completed the line in a world-leading time of 19.51, having already significantly positioned himself ahead of his semi-final opponent.

Shericka Jackson, who has twice defending champion 200m, entered with a personal best of 22.08 in their heat, joining Hunt in the women’s 200m final.

American 100-meter champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden came second in her heat, putting Dina Asher-Smith in second place.

Max Burgin will compete in the men’s 800-meter final on Saturday, but Ben Pattison, a 2023 bronze medalist, had to give up.

Cian McPhillips, Ireland’s Cian McPhillips, who had a remarkable win in a national record of 43.18, slipped Burgin, 23, to the top two spots.

In a race in which Marco Arop and Djamel Sedjati both won Olympic medals, Pattison was only able to finish fifth.

Hannah Nuttall placed seventh in her heat in 14:48.09, but Melissa Courtney-Bryant and Innes FitzGerald did not make the women’s 5, 000m final.