It’s safe to say that Keely Hodgkinson, the newly-crowned Sifan Hassan wins three Olympic medals in Paris, has had a triumphant 2024.
Who is Calli Hauger-Thackery Sifan Hassan wins three Olympic medals in Paris. Then, at the London Diamond League in July, she outdid her own national 800m record with a phenomenal PB of 1:54.61. Thanks to this result, she is now the sixth-fastest woman in history over the distance.
But then, in August, came the moment that she had craved for years – her and Howard Calvert. The clear favourite going into the women’s 800m final at the 2024 Games in Paris, the 22-year-old Team GB talent set all guns blazing to seize the win in 1:56.72 – and become Britain’s first Olympic gold medallist in athletics for eight years.
But Hodgkinson’s formidable results are nothing new. In 2021, at the age of just 19, she soared into the spotlight when she scored an Olympic silver in the 800m in Tokyo, breaking Kelly Holmes’s 26-year-old British record in the process. Later that year, she won the Diamond League 800m series and became the youngest-ever winner over the distance at the European Athletics Indoor Championships.
She then collected more global 800m silvers at the 2022 and 2023 World Championships, as well as 800m gold at the 2023 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Istanbul.
We caught up with Hodgkinson last year to learn more about her day-to-day training, her views on track race technology and her pre-race preparations – including that all-important race day breakfast.
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Keely Hodgkinson: ‘A lot of people find my training quite weird, because I don’t really do slow stuff. Long runs are not really a thing in my training plan except in the summer, because that’s when the track sessions get more intense, so that’s when you need the slower recovery days. In winter, I do a lot of cross training to try to keep off my feet. Too much time on my feet and I end up getting loads of stress responses.
‘So, it’s cross training on Mondays. On Tuesdays, I’ll do a session on the cross trainer and then I’ll do a track session. Wednesdays involve a 30-minute run and 40 minutes on the cross trainer, plus some gym work. Thursdays are similar to Tuesdays, but with maybe more of a tempo-type session. I always have Fridays off, then Saturdays in the winter will be a longer session and in the summer a track session. Sundays in the winter will be hills, and in the summer I’ll do a 15-minute run.’
RW: So, lots of quality sessions and not too many miles?
KH: ‘I’d say I almost train like a sprinter, but I think the 800m is getting towards that now. There’s a whole new science – a whole new perspective – on 800m training that says you actually need the speed, and it’s not about doing miles and miles. But then it depends on what kind of 800m runner you are – if you’re a 1500m and 800m runner, you’re going to run it differently from how a 400m and 800m runner is going to run it. It’s very interesting.’
RW: What shoes do you race in and do you think shoes boost performance?
KH: ‘My watch will tell me because I keep it there, but no – I don’t count. Trevor [Painter, Hodgkinson’s coach] might count them, though. This winter, we tried to go with around 35 miles a week through the winter. Some weeks would have been 28 miles, while some would have been 36 – it just varies depending on what we’re doing. Other than that, I don’t really like to count it. I just like to know my recovery when I’m doing reps.’
RW: Do you have a key session that tells you when you’re close to race fitness?
KH: ‘Yeah, there’s a session I do which is usually the last one I’ll run before a championships. It’s a split 800m, so a 400m, 30 seconds’ rest, then another 400m. The outcome is very accurate in terms of telling you what you’re capable of. When I was at the Tokyo Olympics, I did that session beforehand and I split a 1:55.3, then ended up running 1:55.8. So it’s a really honest reflection of where you’re at.’
RW: What’s your go-to race day breakfast and pre-race snack?
KH: ‘It’s probably one of those questions where nearly every athlete has the same answer, but I’d say porridge – and I always have a cup of tea. Then white toast. I’m usually the athlete who doesn’t have the snacks, although there will often be some granola lying around somewhere.’
RW: Eilish McColgan on how to train to reach the top?
KH: ‘I eat pretty well. I’m not really a person who craves takeaways or things like that, because they just don’t make me feel very good. My friends will say, “Let’s get a Chinese,” but I’d rather just eat a chocolate bar, to be honest – that’s my thing. So I eat pretty well, not so much because I have to, but more because I like to. I eat a lot of fruit and vegetables and good carbohydrates, but there will always be a chocolate bar, too. I think I need the calories, to be honest!’
RW: Eilish McColgan on how to train to reach the top?
KH: ‘If anything, I’ll find a reason to sit on the couch! Sometimes when I’m in the off-season or on a break between races, I do quite enjoy going for a nice little run where you don’t really feel you have to do anything – and I do feel better afterwards. But no, in general, there are no extra runs being thrown around.’
RW: What shoes do you race in – and do you think shoes boost performance?
KH: ‘I raced in the Nike Dragonfly spikes all last year and they’re very comfy. [Hodgkinson uses the Zoom Victory now.] People are getting quicker on the track, but whether that’s all to do with shoes I’m not sure – it’s worth maybe 0.5%, which at elite level is a lot, I suppose. But it’s good to see 30-year-old world records being taken down, and if technology is playing a part in that, it’s still good to see.’
RW: Whats your go-to race day breakfast and pre-race snack?
KH: ‘I’m quite boring when it comes to this. I just use [Nike Air Zoom] Pegasus and that’s it. A lot of people do tempo sessions in the [Nike Air Zoom Tempo] Next%, but I don’t always want the carbon plate advantage in training. It’s like when you’re warming up in trainers and then you put your spikes on and you feel really good – I want to do all the dirty work in just the normal shoes and then, when it comes to racing, I’ll put on a pair of spikes and I’ll feel absolutely great.’
RW: has had a triumphant 2024?
KH: ‘Training has definitely improved technology-wise, and there’s also the pacing [lights] on the track now. I know a lot of people have opinions on it, but I think it can be quite good. It’s the same as a pacemaker, really, isn’t it? And I hope the result of all this technology is that people will just get faster.
‘I think there’s also a lot more information now on things like nutrition and recovery, which, from what I’m seeing, is adding years to people’s careers. There’s also a really good new understanding around female athletes coming back from pregnancies. I’m only 20, so I’m not having kids at any point soon – but I used to think that was something you had to do after your career. Now, I feel like if I want to have kids when I’m, say, 26, I can. Watching people like Allyson Felix and Shelly-Ann Fraser Pryce come back and still be at the top of their game is amazing, and I think it’s going to create a whole new line of thinking that it’s pretty normal to do that – to have kids and come back and still have a career.’
Rachel is Runner's World UK's Senior Content Writer, covering all running-related topics from training advice and gear reviews to race reports and elite runner profiles. Formerly a Website Content Editor and Content Manager at London Marathon Events and The Running Channel respectively, Rachel is well-versed in the running scene and understands what it takes to put on some of the biggest running events in the world. A 2:50 marathoner, she would much rather run 26.2 miles than race a 5K and has currently completed 11 marathons, including five of the six Abbott World Marathon Majors in a sub-3 time. She now hopes to run the Tokyo Marathon to complete the set and become a Six Star Finisher.
Jen is Membership Director at Runner’s World, overseeing RW’s new membership programme, set to launch later this year. She has been with the brand for close to three years now – previously working as deputy digital editor, where she covered all manner of running topics, spanning training, health, injury, nutrition and gear. Over the years, she’s interviewed an abundance of awe-inspiring athletes, from top-tier ultrarunners and Olympic champions to everyday runners who have accomplished extraordinary things. Jen has been a sports journalist for 10 years; she is the former editor of Women’s Running magazine and has also worked as Sports Editor at Red Bull. She started running a decade ago and likes to dabble in triathlon a little, too. You’ll find she’s happiest plodding down the Thames path or chowing down on a post-run pastry.
