Team GB star Keely Hodgkinson said she simply ‘could not believe’ she had achieved her life-long dream after she became only the third British woman in history to win 800m Olympic gold.
Hodgkinson entered into this summer’s Games as one of Team GB’s great medal hopes and the 22-year-old lived up to expectations, and then some, with a phenomenal race at the Stade de France.
The masterful performance on the track came three years after Hodgkinson clinched silver as a 19-year-old on her Olympic debut in Tokyo.
Hodgkinson was visibly overcome with emotion as she crossed the finish line in a time of one minute 56.72 seconds, a victory that took Team GB’s gold medal haul in the French capital to 12.
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The triumph saw Hodgkinson become only the tenth British woman to win an athletics Olympic gold and just the third female Brit to clinch 800m gold after Dame Kelly Holmes at the Athens Games in 2004 and Ann Packer at the Tokyo Games back in 1964.
‘That was absolutely incredible. I’ve worked so hard for this over the last year and I think you could see how much it meant to me when I crossed the line,’ Hodgkinson told BBC Sport shortly after her incredible display.
‘I can’t believe I’ve finally done it and to do it here… where better. The audience was absolutely incredible, it felt like a home crowd in Paris. I’m super, super happy.’
Hodgkinson had to hold off a late challenge from both Ethiopia’s Tsige Dguma and Kenya’s Mary Moraa, who claimed silver and bronze respectively.
‘I feel like it could have been run any way. I wanted to be up near the front, probably quicker than it was at the bell,’ Hodgkinson explained when quizzed on her tactics.
‘But doing the semi-finals and the final back-to-back, I feel like everyone was tired. It’s tough!
‘I just wanted to save myself for that last 100m, I trusted myself. I could feel Mary pushing me on the back straight but I kept my composure and got to the line first so I’m super happy.’
Hodgkinson thanked her support network and loved ones for their contribution in her success and said ‘nobody could take away’ her status as an Olympic champion.
‘I had a little cheeky look up at the screen just to make sure but you can’t do anything until you’ve crossed that line and it’s cemented,’ she added.
‘I’m now the Olympic champion for the next four years and nobody can take that away from me. I can’t believe it.
‘I’ve seen all the support from home, I’ve seen people messaging me and I appreciate everyone. I may not have got back to everyone yet but I will do!
‘Honestly, it couldn’t feel more amazing to have that support and I’m just super happy I can bring it come for my team and everybody.
‘It’s not just me, my people know who they are. It’s a whole team effort so this is our gold medal.’
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