Keely Hodgkinson wins European Championship gold in 800m

It was meant to be the banker of the sporting summer. Keely Hodgkinson’s European superiority is such that her odds to defend her 800metres title were as short as 1-33 on.

Well, those who bet the family silver on a Hodgkinson gold were made to sweat as much as the poorly athlete herself last night.

Ultimately, the 22-year-old dosed up and pulled off the Italian job in Rome, leading from gun to tape. Yet what was expected to be a two-lap procession became a two-minute fight to the finish because of her illness.

Hodgkinson’s personal best coming into the European 800m final was more than three seconds faster than the rest of the field. But she finished just 0.14sec clear of Gabriela Gajanova last night, with the Slovakian breathing down the Brit’s neck in the final few metres and almost completing one of the all-time great shocks.

As Hodgkinson crossed the line at the Stadio Olimpico, there was no celebration. She puffed out her cheeks in relief before merely mustering enough energy to hold up a Union flag on the floor.

Keely Hodgkinson won European 800m gold on Wednesday but was made to work for it

Her victory had been certain, but she fell ill in the build-up to the race and revealed she was undecided on whether to compete

The race was a struggle for the 22-year-old, who won gold by just 0.14 seconds on Wednesday

Instead of raising a glass last night, Hodgkinson said she would head straight to bed – the place she spent much of yesterday contemplating whether or not to race.

‘I was lying in bed, thinking, “Can I run?”,’ admitted Hodgkinson. ‘I’ve been umming and ahing all day.

‘I felt a little bit of a sore threat and sniffles yesterday and then it got worse. My body was achy and I had a headache. I had Vitamin C, aspirin, nose spray, paracetamol. I have just done all I can to get rid of it.

‘I only decided to run 10 minutes before the call room. So I’m quite proud of myself for going on the start line and really attacking the gold given the circumstances.

‘I think I would have been disappointed if I didn’t give it a go. I had a title to defend and I really wanted to do it.

‘It’s the worst I’ve felt in a race but it was just about finding a way to win. If they were going to beat me, they had to catch me. I had to believe in the fact that I am the defending champion. When I finished, it was just relief.’

Hodgkinson’s time of 1min 58.65sec was more than three seconds slower than the personal best she set last year. Yet it was still enough for her to conquer the continent – and she immediately turned her attention to trying to rule the world.

She revealed she decided to run 10 minutes before the call room and that she was proud of herself for going through with the race

She said she took Vitamin C, aspirin, nose spray and paracetamol to ‘try and get rid of it’ in the build-up

Despite her tender age, it is still something of an anomaly that Hodgkinson is yet to win a global gold medal.

After collecting a breakthrough silver at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, she was disappointed to twice end up with the same colour medal at the last two World Championships.

But she will be the favourite to land the big prize in Paris – providing she can quickly recover from her cold.

This season, Hodgkinson has already run almost a second faster than her nearest challenger, Kenyan Mary Moraa, who beat her to world gold in Budapest last summer. While America’s Olympic champion Athing Mu, meanwhile, has also not competed since last September because of hamstring issues.

It means Hodgkinson is arguably Britain’s best bet to win an Olympic athletics gold this summer – something they failed to achieve at Tokyo 2020 for the first time since Atlanta 1996.

‘I feel like I’m in the shape of my life,’ she added. ‘I’m super excited for Paris. The next seven weeks are going to be incredible.

‘The Olympic Games are so special and it’s a huge opportunity to change your life and I’m just ready to go for it. I feel really confident.’

Hodgkinson now has her sights set on Olympic gold when she competes in Paris this summer

Dina Asher-Amith (centre), meanwhile, has won 100m gold and added 4x100m relay gold on Wednesday night

Another athlete full of confidence is Dina Asher-Smith. She added to her individual 100m title last night with gold in the 4x100m relay, taking Britain’s overall medal tally to 13 and placing them third on the medal table, which was comfortably topped by hosts Italy.

Asher-Smith ran the first leg of the relay before Desiree Henry, Amy Hunt and Daryll Neita brought the baton home in 41.91sec, ahead of France and Netherlands.

‘It feels special, I really wanted this one,’ said Asher-Smith. ‘It was so slick and so smooth. We are looking to do amazing things in Paris.’