Keely Hodgkinson’s bid for European gold continued as she stormed into the final of the women’s 800m in Birmingham, moments after her rival Audrey Werro suffered a dramatic fall that initially put her place in Friday’s showpiece in doubt.
Werro, the 22-year-old Swiss athlete who ran the fastest time for 43 years earlier this season, led from the start in the first semi-final. However, she crashed to the floor on the final bend. Audrey Werro fell with just under 140m of the race remaining, stumbling and hitting the track face-first.
The Swiss runner got back to her feet a moment later and finished the race in last place, grimacing and clutching her chest. The opening semi-final was unfolding as expected until the sudden stumble, which left the athlete in visible discomfort as she rolled onto her side before eventually completing the race at a slow jog.
However, Werro will race against Hodgkinson in a highly anticipated final following a successful appeal. While an earlier angle had appeared to show Werro clipping her own leg before falling, footage later confirmed that France’s Anais Bourgoin had hit Werro’s right foot with her left hand, disrupting her rhythm.
There was less drama in the second semi-final, where Hodgkinson safely crossed the line first in one minute 57.38 seconds. The Olympic champion led from the start and held off the fast-improving Femke Broeders-Bol—a two-time world 400m hurdles champion who switched events this season—to advance.
Regarding the competition, former marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe noted that Broeders-Bol appeared to have another gear she did not need to expend. The women’s 800m has become the must-watch event of the championships due to the expected three-way battle between Hodgkinson, Werro, and Broeders-Bol.
Asked if she had seen Werro’s fall before her own race, Hodgkinson said TV: “I heard an ‘ooh’ from the crowd which is never a good sign. I don’t know what it looked like.” Speaking before the appeal was finalized, she added: “Obviously it’s a real shame and I hope she’s OK. I hope she’s in the final tomorrow, that’d be a really exciting race.”
Hodgkinson emphasized her readiness for the pressure, stating, “The excitement makes me excited. I can’t wait to step out there. It brings out the best in me.” She further expressed her hopes for the upcoming final: “I love a good challenge. Hopefully it’ll be a good race, a clean race, nobody falling over.”
Hodgkinson will be joined in the final by fellow Briton Jemma Reekie, who capitalized on the chaos in the first semi-final to win that heat. There will be 10 athletes in Friday’s final instead of nine, with Lithuanian athlete Gabija Galvydyte—who was also clipped by Werro as she fell—advancing alongside the Swiss runner.
Former Olympic long jump champion Greg Rutherford commented on the severity of the incident: “It was a hard hit on the floor. These tracks are incredibly hard, especially when they’ve been sun-baked. It really was a difficult thing to watch, and you’re just hoping at that point that there’s no serious injury.”
The event remains shadowed by the historical context of the 800m, as no one has broken Czech athlete Jarmila Kratochvilova’s 1983 record of 1:53.28. While there have been claims that her performance was assisted by systematic doping—allegations she has strenuously denied—the current field continues to push boundaries. Werro has run three of the nine fastest times in history this season, with a personal best of 1:53.80, which is faster than Hodgkinson’s 1:54.33.
Ultimately, the successful appeal ensures that fans will be treated to a blockbuster final. As Steve Cram noted, “The question is whether Werro is OK—it was a really hard fall. But we are getting the final we wanted. That’s one way to look at it.”
“That is the only criteria that you’re going to make it through.
Werro herself did not know, telling TV: “I was feeling great but unfortunately I don’t know, something happened and then I was on the ground.”
The 24-year-old has won the past two European titles and will be hoping to defend her crown following a successful season that has seen her break the long-standing indoor 800m world record, win her first world title and
If you don’t do that, you have no chance of being advanced through to that final.
The 24-year-old has won the past two European titles and will be hoping to defend her crown following a successful season that has seen her break the long-standing indoor 800m world record, win her first world title and improve her British record outdoors.
An added incentive for Hodgkinson will be the chance to break the longest-standing world record in athletics.
Still largely an unknown in the 800m after deciding to switch disciplines from 400m hurdles, the Dutch athlete impressed at the Paris Diamond League event in June with a time of 1:55.60.
