After winning the gold medal, Keely Hodgkinson of Great Britain has just defended her 800M European indoor athletes championships in 2023. It was a huge moment for the athlete as the feat she achieved is rare among others.
The 21-year-old athlete was given the gold medal after she covered 800 meters within one minute and 58.66 seconds. Last weekend, Keely Hodgkinson set a similar record in Birmingham in an 800M race.
Other athletes competed well in the 800M race in Istanbul, with athletes from Slovenia and France coming 2nd and 3rd, respectively. Anita Horvat, a Slovenian, was the one who came second to win the silver medal, while Agnes Raharolahy came third to win the bronze medal. Before Keely Hodgkinson went into the race, many had expected her to win outrightly as her previous performance was impeccable. She met the expectations of people after her win.
After her win, Keely Hodgkinson dedicated it to her former coach Joseph Gavin who died earlier from an illness. She said she dedicated her win to her former coach because of his faith in her before breaking into the limelight. Keely said he had believed in her success even before she was ten.
"I've not had time to process it. This one is definitely for him. He had a lot of belief in little 10-year-old me. I hope to make him really proud and I know he will be up there watching, along with his wife at home who I know will be so proud of me as well," Keely Hodgkinson said.
More Praises for Keely Hodgkinson
Britain’s world 1500m champion Jake Wightman was impressed by Keely Hodgkinson's win. According to the world 1500m champion, Keely Hodgkinson was very strong in accomplishing her goals despite the series of emotions she might be experiencing.
While speaking to BBC Sport, Jake Wightman said, "The professionalism she has shown between every round, to keep that emotion bottled up, celebrating her birthday in between, there must have been so many emotions going through her head throughout these championships. To be as good as she was in that final, to be so dominant, shows how good an athlete a professional Keely really is."
Another Briton Clinches Gold
Jazmin Sawyers was excited after clinching a gold medal in the latest Indoors championships 2023. According to the 28-year-old, who has won two European medals outdoors, she was very excited about the new award from the event. The European Indoor athletes' championships 2023 was favorable for the British as many came home with awards.
The Briton, just like Keely Hodgkinson, was the clear favorite to win the event, and she did after the final results were called. While speaking to BBC Sports, the athlete couldn't hide her excitement about winning the gold medal in the long jump.
"I've never won anything. I'm still in shock. I feel like a seven-meter jump has been in me for so long. It's been so long that you start to wonder if it will ever come. I didn't know it was going to come then. Seven meters is a real jump, it won the Olympics. That will give me so much confidence going forward. I just want more of it," she said.