European Athletics Championships 2026: Keely Hodgkinson takes 800m silver behind Swiss rival Audrey Werro
Werro’s triumph was all the more impressive given she suffered a nasty fall in her semi-final on Thursday, before later being reinstated into the final.
Replays showed the left hand of France’s Anais Bourgoin had clipped Werro’s right foot. But, clutching her chest in pain as she jogged across the line, she still faced a race against time to recover.
That drama led to a congested 10-athlete final – but, despite Briton Jemma Reekie’s best efforts, there only ever appeared three contenders for gold.
Hodgkinson had twice beaten Werro during the indoor season – including to win her first world title – but was stunned when the European under-23 champion surged past her at the Stockholm Diamond League this summer and produced the first sub-1:54 clocking since 1983.
Hodgkinson, who achieved the first major outdoor title of her career at the European Championships in 2022 before retaining the title in Rome two years ago, vowed not to allow that to happen again.
But Werro crashed her bid to become the first British woman to win three consecutive European titles in the same event, proving she will be a force to be reckoned with on athletics’ biggest stages over the coming years.
Hodgkinson can also expect Broeders-Bol, third in 1:55.54, to only improve with World Championship gold up for grabs next year, following the rapid progress made by the two-time world 400m hurdles champion since switching events this season.
