Keely Hodgkinson has claimed a spectacular victory in the women’s 800m to take home a gold medal and surpass the silver she won in Tokyo three years ago.
The Team GB star lived up to her favourite tag without any nerves to beat a strong field in Paris tonight, including world champion Mary Moraa of Kenya.
Hodgkinson arrived at the Paris Games with high hopes, ranked world number one and breezed through the qualifiers and semi-finals.
And she thrived under the pressure at a raucous Stade de France to clock a winning time of 1 minute 56.72 seconds and now the 22-year-old can bask in the glory of being an Olympic champion.
Hodgkinson waited patiently for one of her other rivals to make an early move and set the pace and Ethiopian Tsige Duguma did her duty.
Keely Hodgkinson has claimed a spectacular victory in the women’s 800m to take home a gold medal.
The Team GB star lived up to her favourite label without any nerves to beat a strong field.
She showed great confidence to overcome world champion Mary Moraa of Kenya.
However, it was all part of the Briton’s plan, and Hodgkinson stood on her competitor’s shoulder, ready to attack.
And he did just seconds later, assuming the lead position three-quarters of the way through the first lap and never looking back.
As the halfway bell rang, the field of world-class athletes furiously picked up the pace in a final bid for a spot on the Olympic podium.
In particular, Hodgkinson had to contend with a strong showing from Moraa, which saw her virtually neck and neck with the Briton at times during the second half of the race.
But Team GB’s poster girl effortlessly picked up the pace and pulled away from the pack to cross the finish line.
As the significance of what he had just done dawned on him, Hodgkinson let out a roar and took photos with his loved ones to kick off what will be a long night of celebration.
And she nearly capped her winning run with a memorable performance ringing the Olympic bell – her effort in the new post-event role was as strong as anyone else’s during these Games.
Duguma eventually overtook Moraa to take silver with a personal best time of 1 minute 57.15 seconds.
Hodgkinson waited patiently for one of her other rivals to make an early move and set the pace.
However, it was all part of the Briton’s plan and Hodgkinson stood on her competitor’s shoulder, ready to attack.
And he did just seconds later, assuming the lead position three-quarters of the way through the first lap and never looking back.
Team GB’s poster girl then effortlessly picked up the pace and pulled away from the pack to cross the finish line.
Hodgkinson showed his emotions as the significance of his feat tonight sank in.
The world champion, for his part, held on to bronze after covering the distance in 1 minute 57.42 seconds.
Hodgkinson’s road to Olympic gold felt like a procession at times and his victory tonight comes after comfortable displays in the earlier rounds.
Her semi-final, in particular, was reminiscent of a training run, with the Briton seemingly jogging towards the finish, several metres ahead of the competition, having taken an early lead.
Still, the big favorite managed an impressive time of one minute and 56.86 seconds, the fastest of the Games so far.
Shortly after her semi-final, she told the BBC:You can’t take any risks and this gave me good practice for tomorrow as well, but I just wanted to be safe in qualifying.
‘Job accomplished. We are in the final, the mission is underway.
‘I’ve said it all year, I really want to improve my money.
‘I think I’m in the best physical, mental and emotional shape I’ve ever been to do it.
When the significance of what he had just done dawned on him, Hodgkinson let out a roar and took photos with his loved ones.
Duguma eventually overtook Moraa to take silver with a personal best time of 1 minute 57.15 seconds.
Meanwhile, Moraa (right) held on to bronze after running the distance in 1 minute 57.42 seconds.
“I just hope I can get it done tomorrow and see what we can do.”
Paula Radcliffe, a former women’s marathon world record holder, said she thought Hodgkinson had “another gear”.
And she proved it tonight at the Stade de France, beaming as she received her gold medal.
