by 
Keely Hodgkinson was the golden girl of the Summer Olympics – but it could have “gone better”, according to her coach.
Hodgkinson became the first British athlete since Mo Farah in 2016 to win a track gold medal, a feat which brought her widespread acclaim and made her favorite for the 2024 Sports Personality of the Year title. the BBC next month.
But her coach, Trevor Painter, now admits it could have been even more emphatic if she had matched her times before the Games.
At the London Diamond League athletics meeting, Hodgkinson – from Atherton, Greater Manchester – set a British record of 1:54.61, becoming the sixth fastest woman of all time on this distance. And speaking at Sportcity in Manchester, Painter said: “Paris, on paper, went well – but it could have gone better.
“We wanted to run fast in London like she did because it would score a point and everyone would say, ‘Oh, well, she’s going to win.’ We’re not going to run that kind of time.
“It gave us confidence and put everyone under pressure. We knew that going to Paris was all about “getting the job done”.
“After the semi-final, she said, ‘I want to put on a show tomorrow in the final.’ And we said, “Let’s just win the gold medal – let’s not put on a show.” »
Until last summer, Hodgkinson was a three-time silver medalist – at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 and at two World Championships, in Eugene in 2022 and Budapest in 2023.
Painter – who is married and coaches to retired British Olympian and 800m runner Jenny Meadows – said: “In every race this year, if someone has run 56 seconds for the first lap, they are not not dropped below 60”. [seconds] for the second.
“So that was a big thing for us because we knew she could run 56 [seconds] and then in the second round she could run 58 [seconds]. We said: “Go ahead and run” 56 [seconds] and it will be a comfortable second round.
“And then in the warm-up, she was a little tired from the semi-final, running 1h56 the day before.”
The Briton was in form to win a gold medal, finishing the final 800m semi-final with the fastest time overall, with 1:56:86.
Painter said: “We usually have a day off between the semi-final and the final, so I think that was a bit of a headache for him. As it was an Olympic final, there were still a few nerves.
“She only went there for 58 years [seconds] through the first lap which gave the others a chance, so the next 200 meters were interesting. It seemed tight until 150 meters from the finish, then in the last 120 meters. [metres]she started to walk away and that’s when I was able to relax.
She won gold in 1:56.72, improving on her semi-final time, saving her best for last, and the 22-year-old was named the 2024 British Sportswoman of the Year by the Sports Journalists Association (SJA) earlier this month.
The 2024 Sports Personality of the Year will be at Media City in Salford on Tuesday December 17 and broadcast live on BBC One.
Painter added: “She loves the limelight. She wants to end up as a legend and win as many awards as possible.
Hodgkinson, currently in South Africa for a training camp, will aim to defend his 800m world title at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo – the scene of his first Olympic medal.
