Team England’s Keely Hodgkinson finally flipped the silver script with Olympic gold at Paris 2024.

The 22-year-old stormed to 800m glory at the Stade de France, executing an all-but-perfect race to lead the pack through the first 400m before shrugging off the relentless Mary Moraa - who pipped her to Commonwealth gold in 2022 - in the home straight to cross the line first in a time of 1:56.72. 

It was a moment the Team England star had been waiting for for the entirety of her senior career, having had to settle with three global medals of the silver variety in successive years.

“I can’t believe I’ve finally done it,” she said, moments after having upgraded her Tokyo 2020 silver.

“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.


“I wanted to save myself for the last 100m, I trusted myself. I could feel Mary [Moraa] pushing me on the back straight but my composure got me to the line first this time.

“It means so much and to do it here [at the Stade de France] where better? The audience was absolutely incredible, It felt like a home crowd for me in Paris. I’m super super happy.

“The girls are incredible and I knew to cross that line first I had to go one better than I ever had. I feel like I have and there’s still more there so the future is bright.

“I’m now the Olympic champion for the next four years and no one can take that away from me.” 

Hodgkinson’s performance in Paris finally changed the silver narrative she was handed at Tokyo 2020, the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the 2023 World Championships.

But while Paris might be Hodgkinson’s new career highlight, she first showed signs of stardom when representing Team England on the junior circuit back in 2017.

At 15-years-old she took her first gold medal at the English Championships while also setting a lifetime best, before adding the 1500m UK School Games title to her already growing sporting CV.


In the years that followed the Wigan-native clocked a European U20 record at her senior international debut and won the British Indoor Championships, firmly establishing herself as a master of her craft and one-to-watch. 

This was just the start for the now two-time 800m European champion and British record holder, who ran a 1:54.61 PB in London last month to make her the sixth-fastest woman ever over the two-lap distance.

Hodgkinson’s pursuit of perfection may have manifested itself in Paris but her maiden Olympic gold also marks the start of a new era for women's middle-distance running.

Three years ago in Tokyo she broke Dame Kelly Holmes’ British record, while this time around she became only the third British female to win an 800m gold at the Olympics - not to mention Britain’s first gold medal on the track since Mo Farah’s double in 2016. 

Wherever Hodgkinson goes, new records follow. She’s come a long way since she first donned the Team England vest but we can be certain the road ahead is long - and golden - for the new Olympic champion.