Keely Hodgkinson eased into the semi-finals of the World Indoor Championships 800m in Torun, Poland, with a dominant victory in 2:00.32, despite a disrupted build-up caused by her luggage being lost by KLM. The airline misplaced her kit for 48 hours, forcing the Olympic silver medallist to borrow spikes from a Polish athlete, which gave her a blister.
“It came last night, thank God,” Hodgkinson said. “I was starting to get annoyed. A very nice Polish girl let me borrow her spikes, and they gave me a blister. I just didn’t have any kit or my supplements. But it’s all good now.”
The 24-year-old, who broke the world indoor 800m record last month, expressed her dislike for the three-round format over as many days. “I just don’t like rounds,” she said. “I don’t like them at all. That was horrible, to be honest. All these things do go through your head.”
Hodgkinson has missed the last three World Indoor Championships due to injury, making her participation this year emotional. Her main rival, Switzerland’s Audrey Werro, also advanced after winning her heat in 1:59.91. In the men’s 800m, Britain’s Ben Pattison and US teenager Cooper Lutkenhaus progressed.
Ukraine’s Yaroslava Mahuchikh won the first gold of the championships in the high jump with 2.01m, while three athletes shared silver. Mahuchikh competed with blue and yellow eye makeup “to remind the global audience of Russia’s aggression”.
