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Gold medal favourite Keely Hodgkinson was relieved to get her Olympics under way after a round of 800m heats that left 17-year-old British debutant Phoebe Gill fighting back tears on the start line in Paris.
Tokyo 2020 and two-time world silver medallist Hodgkinson, who two weeks ago lowered the British record to a world-leading 1:54.61 at the Diamond League meet in London, was the fastest finisher in the fourth of six heats at Stade De France, crossing the line in 1:59.31.
Gill clawed her way back after dropping to fourth to secure the last of three berths available from her heat in 1:58.83, while Tokyo fourth-place finisher Jemma Reekie got the job done with a first-place finish from the opening group in 2:00.00.
Hodgkinson said: “I don’t really like heats. They’re not my favourite. I was just glad to qualify. I thought the girls really stepped up, because I was looking at their heats and I was like, ‘that’s quite tough, actually, for a heat.
“[Heats] are worse than the final, to be honest. The final you know you’re just giving everything and that’s that.
“In the heats and the rounds you have to contend with people giving it their absolute all, you’re trying to conserve energy, at the same time you don’t want to make a mistake.
“So I’m definitely glad that’s done. I’m just glad to make it through safely. The semis will be fun.”
Hodgkinson, ranked world number one at her signature distance, stormed to a surprise silver three summers ago, breaking Dame Kelly Holmes’ 26-year-old British record in the process.
She and has since collected silvers at back-to-back world championships and the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and is one of Great Britain’s best hopes for gold on the purple Paris track.
Hodgkinson did not rule out the possibility of all three British women reaching Monday evening’s final, saying: “I don’t see why not. I feel like things can happen at championships, I feel like Phoebe has done really well. She’s taking it all in her stride.”
When Hodgkinson elected to run the 400m at June’s British championships it was St Albans’ teenager Gill who beat Reekie to the national title and booked herself a spot on Team GB.
It was as recently as June 2023 that Gill won the 800m title at the English Schools championship, and by May had lowered her personal best to 1:57:86 at the Irish Milers meeting in Belfast, a time the Deborah Steer-coached athlete said made her feel instantly “older”.
And just over a year after that schools title Gill, one of 14 teenagers representing Team GB this summer in Paris, had to keep it together on the start line when she realised she was officially an Olympian.
She said: “It’s very emotional being out there. It’s my first time in that sort of arena, and, you know, it’s the Olympics. It’s the best competition in athletics, and seeing my face on the screen when the camera came around, I was trying not to cry.
“I was like, you can’t break down before doing 800 metres! (Even) in that cool room, and having that camera on me, it’s something new to me. And it really reminds me, I’m in a top league now.
“I’m so proud of myself, because I was looking at photos of myself yesterday, doing primary school cross-country league, and I just think she would be so happy that I’m here now in Paris, doing the Olympics, because it was a big dream of mine.”
Friday was the first time the Paris track had been tested and by all appearances it seems to be a fast one, with 15 women breaking two minutes in the 800m heats.
Seeing my face on the screen when the camera came around, I was trying not to cry— Phoebe Gill
There was just one gold medal up for grabs, in the men’s 10,000m, which was claimed by Ugandan three-time world champion and world record holder Joshua Cheptegei in a new Olympic record-setting 26:43.14.
Ethiopian Berihu Aregawi was the runner-up in 26:43.44, while the United States’ Grant Fisher rounded out the podium with a season’s best 26:43.46.
The mixed 4X400m relay returned after making its Olympic debut in Tokyo and the British quartet of Sam Reardon, Laviai Nielsen, Alex Haydock-Wilson and Nicole Yeargin qualified for Saturday evening’s final in a national record-setting time of 3:10.61 to finish first in their heat.
There was a world record of 3:07.41 for the United States team of Vernon Norwood, Shamier Little, Bryce Deadmon and Kaylyn Brown, with GB the third fastest of the field behind the US and hosts France.
It was not meant to be for Northallerton shot putter Scott Lincoln, who missed out on Saturday’s final with a best throw of 19.69m.
It followed a morning session which saw world 1500m champion Josh Kerr and women’s 100m sprint trio Dina Asher-Smith, Daryll Neita and Imani-Lara Lansiquot all through to their respective semi-finals.
