Keely Hodgkinson Shares How 400m Diamond League Debut Will Prepare Her for Unbeaten 800m Spell

Keely Hodgkinson will make her Diamond League debut in the 400 metres this Thursday in Rome, a race she considers a "fun" but vital part of her strategy to remain undefeated in the 800 metres this season.

The Olympic 800m champion faces a strong field, including reigning European champion Natalia Bukowiecka, Jamaica's Nickisha Pryce, and British record holder Amber Anning, the 2025 world indoor champion.

Hodgkinson, 24, has already showcased her speed over the distance, recording the fastest split in the women’s 4x400m final at this year’s World Indoor Championships in Torun, where she also claimed the 800m gold with a championship record.

While she has not set any specific time targets for the Rome race, Hodgkinson emphasized its importance in her overall preparation for her main event.

"I am really excited for tomorrow. I am grateful to have the opportunity to race some of the best girls in the world," she said at a press conference in Rome on Wednesday as per Independent. "I am very privileged to be on that start line with them, so I am hoping they pull something great out of me. I’ll be using tomorrow as a stimulus of fun, to be competitive and to also do something different."

The British star explained that competing in the 400m is a strategic decision to improve her speed, a goal that has been previously derailed by injuries.

"The last couple of years I have said that I have wanted to work on my 400m speed, and that hopefully the plan is it will help my 800m – but I have been unable to do that with some injuries I have had," she noted.

"I feel like this is the first time in about probably two years that I have been able to put together an actual bit of 400m block work and hopefully come out and do something great with that. It is a bit of a personal challenge, but also I think it will help me towards my 800m and getting faster."

Following her 400m outing, Hodgkinson's schedule includes 800m races at the Diamond League meetings in Stockholm and Eugene. She will then compete in a highly anticipated race in London on July 18, where she hopes to challenge the longest-standing world record in athletics. Her season also features the defense of her European title in Birmingham.

Reflecting on her ambitions, Hodgkinson adopted a relaxed approach but revealed one key objective.

"I don’t really like to set goals that much anymore. I am very much a ‘go with the flow’ type of person, see what life throws at you," she said. "I am genuinely in a place in my life where I have everything that I can want. I am happy, I love what I do. I wake up and go to work every day, I just love it."

"If I say one thing," she added, "I probably would like to be undefeated in 800m this year, that would be nice."