Hodgkinson reigns at Keely Klassic event despite injury

On an afternoon when Keely Hodgkinson had planned to claim a world record, Great Britain's queen of athletics perhaps discovered something more precious.

- JACK RATHBORN

The heartbreak of her shock injury this week, scuppering an audacious run to take down Jolanda Ceplak's long-standing mark of 1m 55.82secs, had somewhat subsided as hundreds of adoring young girls turned out to offer overwhelming support to their idol at the inaugural Keely Klassic.

This hamstring tear is a blow, particularly in the short-term, denying the Paris gold medallist a shot at another crown at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Nanjing, China, next month. But the 22-year-old remains bullish she can run again in two to three weeks and ultimately push for gold at the outdoor World Championships in Tokyo in September.

So without Hodgkinson, attention turned to Georgia Hunter Bell on the track, and she flirted with the British 1,500m indoor record, only to fall six-tenths of a second short but still producing an impressive run to win in 4mins 0.63secs. “It felt like a really fun atmosphere,” Hunter Bell said, with European and World Indoor Championships next on her schedule as she bids to back up her bronze medal from Paris. “When we came out everyone was dancing, so it was a bit different to the usual meet.”

Joining the Olympic bronze medallist as the biggest attractions without Hodgkinson was Olympian Neil Gourley, who broke the British 1,000m indoor record in 2mins 16.74secs to sharpen up for a run at European and, pending an almighty domestic battle in one of the deepest events, the World Indoor Championships too.