by The British champion of the 800m Olympic Keely Hodgkinson was forced to withdraw from a world record attempt on Saturday as well as the European indoor championships next month after having undergone an injury to the hamstring.
The 22 -year -old man had promised that she was ready to break the longtime world record of 800m short track at the New Keely Klassic event in Birmingham. However, during her last training session before the competition, she felt a waterproofing in the hamstrings, what a scan later revealed was more serious than it was initially appeared.
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“I will not lie – when I had the news, I shed a tear,” said Hodgkinson. “I worked so hard for this moment and I was in the best form of my life. I am absolutely emptied that I will not be able to run for fans, especially after many bought tickets to see me try to break the world record. “”
Hodgkinson still hopes to participate in the world indoor world championships in China in five weeks, but a declaration of his management group, strong, admitted that there were “questions about his ability to compete again this winter”.
Meanwhile, she will attend the Keely Klassic to encourage other British stars, including the 1500m Olympic bronze medalist, Georgia Bell and the world champion of interior pole Molly Caudery.
“This event has never been about me – it was always a question of presenting British talents, creating something new for sport and bringing more energy and entertainment to athletics”, said Hodgkinson, who had organized the event itself with the help of strong. “This is something that I got involved in the long term.
“I will be in Birmingham on Saturday to do everything I can to make sure it is an incredible night for athletes and fans. I want to help create a real festival atmosphere, to get involved with as many young people as possible, and I hope to inspire the next generation to fall in love with athletics. »»
The absence of Hodgkinson, however, will spare the BBC blushers who, before his injury, had already decided not to show his world record on his main land canals.
Instead, he had chosen to show Mr. Malcolm’s list, a film which he released as recently as October 2024, and a rehearsal of Flog IT! On BBC two instead – with the Keely Klassic event relegated to its Iplayer.
This had been a shock for a lot of athletics since Hodgkinson attracted 9.1 million viewers during the Gold Victory in Paris and won the Sports Personality Prize for the BBC year in December .
A source from the BBC said that the company should make difficult decisions every day and that everything could not be broadcast on linear television. They added that the Keely Klassic would be available on BBC Iplayer, which makes it easily accessible to a huge digital audience through the United Kingdom.
