LIÉVIN, FRANCE, February 19 — Olympic 800 champion Keely Hodgkinson delivered herself a priceless early birthday gift, a World Record at the Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais Trophée WIT meet. The 23-year-old Briton raced aggressively from the gun to cross the line in 1:54.87. Her time axed 0.95 from the old standard, 1:55.82 run by Jolanda Čeplak at the ‘02 Euro Indoor Championships.
“That was really fun,” said Hodgkinson, whose primary opponent was the clock even with ‘24 world indoor titlist Tsige Duguma and ‘25’s Diamond League champion Audrey Werro in the field. “I’ve been really looking forward to this for a good few weeks so thank you for the amazing crowd,” said the new WR-holder. “I could hear them all the way around.”
So what’s the “birthday” angle to her WR with the date she’ll turn 24, March 03, still 12 days in the future? Well, for some time Hodgkinson had been keenly aware that Slovenian Čeplak set the old standard on the day she was born.
Čeplak had sped to her WR in a fierce Euro Indoor battle with Austria’s Stephanie Graf, who had finished just 0.03 behind after leading as late as 20m from the finish.
Hodgkinson’s run targeted the WR from the get-go. Five days earlier, with no pacemaker or Wavelights, a relaxed-looking Hodgkinson had raced a heat at the UK Champs in 1:56.33, the No. 3 all-time indoor mark and an 0.85 improvement on her own British record. The test told her it was go time to attack the record. “I have been very vocal in the past about wanting to get it,” Hodgkinson said. “I feel like it is my record to break. We’ll give it a good go.”
Rabbit Anna Gryc was asked to hit halfway in 55.8 with the Wavelights tuned to 1:53.8 pace — confidence clearly sky high for Hodgkinson, whose outdoor best is 1:54.61. Čeplak had split 57.34 at 400.
From the gun here, with the women’s 800 the final event of the evening, the approach was all gaiters and gas. Gryc, slotted in lane 5 with Hodgkinson on the far outside in 6, sprinted to get on terms with the star racer. After the break at 150m, Hodgkinson slid in behind her rabbit with Werro tucking into 3rd a couple steps back.
Čeplak had reached 200 in 28.34. Hodgkinson undercut that by a mile, 26.83. Running with apparent ease, Hodgkinson passed 400 in 56.00 (these figures are phototimer splits slightly different from those announced as the race progressed).
Another 50m down the track entering the backstretch for the third time, Gryc stepped off. Hodgkinson swiftly soldiered on, rapidly building her advantage over Werro from 3m to about 10 by 600 as she covered the third lap in 29.34. Her 1:25.05 split left Čeplak’s 1:26.68 in the shade and set up the need for a 30.76 last lap to reach the record.
Full of form and churning some 5m behind the ambitiously tuned Wavelights, Hodgkinson rushed around the final bend and down the stretch to finish in front of the boisterous crowd with a token dip of the head a meter before the line.
Werro (1:58.38) and Duguma (1:58.83) trailed in well beaten. Hodgkinson, wearing a look of mild shock in the moment, clasped her head with both hands and then turned to embrace Werro.
After Čeplak set her record, she was soon asked about Jarmila Kratochvilová’s absolute WR, 1:53.28. “There isn’t anyone capable of breaking it this year I think,” she told T&FN. That may be true this season, as well. No one has even approached sub-1:54 since Pamela Jelimo ran 1:54.01 in ‘08, the year the Kenyan won Olympic gold.
But the year is still young and so is Hodgkinson.
Other Liévin highlights included world leaders from Manolo Karalís in the men’s PV (19-8¼/6.00) and Yasser Triki in the TJ (56-11¼ /17.35 to equal his Algerian record), plus Freweyni Hailu in the women’s 3000 (8:24.59).
Australia’s Jessica Hull won a fast-paced 2000 in 5:26.68 (2, 2 W), running free and clear over the closing 700. Four behind her also scored top 10 ATL spots for the rarely-run distance.
LIÉVIN WIT RESULTS
800: 1. Eliott Crestan (Bel) 1:43.91 NR (x, 7 W);
2. Maciej Wyderka (Pol) 1:44.64; 3. Slimane Moula (Alg) 1:44.80 PR; 4. Mohamed Ali Gouaned (Alg) 1:44.92.
1500: 1. Isaac Nader (Por) 3:32.44 NR; 2. Federico Riva (Ita) 3:33.04 NR; 3. Andrew Coscoran (Ire) 3:33.09 NR; 4. Stefan Nillessen (Neth) 3:33.64 NR; 5. Jochem Vermeulen (Bel) 3:33.71 NR; 6. Håkon Moe Berg (Nor) 3:33.96 PR.
3000: 1. Addisu Yihune (Eth) 7:33.58 PR; 2. Jacob Krop (Ken) 7:34.68; 3. Getnet Wale (Eth) 7:35.44; 4. Azeddine Habz (Fra) 7:35.79.
60H: 1. tie, Just Kwaou-Mathey (Fra) & Enrique Llopis (Spa) 7.45 =NR; 3. Johnny Brackins (US) 7.50; 4. Wilhem Belocian (Fra) 7.51; 5. Jamal Britt (US) 7.52; 6. Eric Edwards (US) 7.54; 7. Daniel Roberts (US) 7.60.
PV: 1. Manolo Karalís (Gre) 19-8¼ (6.00); 2. Sondre Guttormsen (Nor) 19-4¼ (5.90); 3. Zach Bradford (US) 19-4¼; 4. KC Lightfoot (US) 19-¼ (5.80); 5. Kurtis Marschall (Aus) 19-¼; 6. EJ Obiena (Phi) 18-8¼ (5.70); 7. Sam Kendricks (US) 18-4½ (5.60).
TJ: 1. Yasser Triki (Alg) 56-11¼ (17.35) =NR (WL);
2. Jordan Scott (Jam) 56-1¾ (17.11); 3. Lázaro Martínez (Cub) 54-10 (16.71).
SP: 1. Leonardo Fabbri (Ita) 71-7¼ (21.82); 2. Joe Kovacs (US) 70-2½ (21.40); 3. Roger Steen (US) 70-1¾ (21.38).
WOMEN
400: 1. Emma Zapletalová (Svk) 51.40; 2. Lieke Klaver (Neth) 51.67; 3. Sharlene Mawdsley (Ire) 51.85.
800: 1. Keely Hodgkinson (GB) 1:54.87 WR (old WR 1:55.82 Jolanda Čeplak [Slo] ’02) (26.83, 29.17 [56.00], 29.05 [1:25.05], 29.82) (56.00/58.87);
2. Audrey Werro (Swi) 1:58.38; 3. Tsige Duguma (Eth) 1:58.83; 4. Nigist Getachew (Eth) 1:59.54 PR.
1500: 1. Georgia Hunter Bell (GB) 4:00.21; 2. Birke Haylom (Eth) 4:01.17; 3. Saron Berhe (Eth) 4:01.51; 4. Jemma Reekie (GB) 4:02.14; 5. Gabriela DeBues-Stafford (Can) 4:02.17.
2000: 1. Jessica Hull (Aus) 5:26.68 NR (WL) (2, 2 W); 2. Salomé Afonso (Por) 5:30.31 NR (3, 3 W); 3. Agathe Guillemot (Fra) 5:32.18 PR (6, 6 W); 4. Lucia Stafford (Can) 5:32.68 PR (7, 7 W); 5. Kena Tufa (Eth) 5:34.51 PR (8, 9 W).
3000: 1. Freweyni Hailu (Eth) 8:24.59 (WL);
2. Aleshign Baweke (Eth) 8:26.29 PR; 3. Nadia Battocletti (Ita) 8:26.44 NR; 4. Marta García (Spa) 8:34.28 NR6.
60H: 1. Devynne Charlton (Bah) 7.79; 2. Pia Skrzyszowska (Pol) 7.83; 3. Ditaji Kambundji (Swi) 7.84; 4. Megan Simmonds (Jam) 7.88 PR; 5. Nadine Visser (Neth) 7.88.
PV: 1. Tina Šutej (Slo) 15-5 (4.70); 2. tie, Katie Moon (US) & Imogen Ayris (NZ) 15-5 =PR; 4. tie, Olivia McTaggart (NZ) & Marie-Julie Bonnin (Fra) 15-1 (4.60); 6. tie, Emily Grove (US) & Amálie Švábíková (CzR) 15-1; 8. tie, Wilma Murto (Fin) & Chloe Timberg (US) 15-1.
