Keely Hodgkinson Struggles to Come to Terms with Defeat After Audrey Werro Denies Her Gold

Keely Hodgkinson struggled to hide her frustration after being narrowly beaten to the 800m gold medal at the European Championships in Birmingham on Friday night.

The reigning Olympic and European champion was the favourite to defend her title but was ultimately edged out by Switzerland's Audrey Werro in a thrilling final. Hodgkinson clocked a swift 1:55.01, but it wasn't enough to hold off Werro, who set a new Championship record with a time of 1:54.81.

Werro's victory was a remarkable comeback after she suffered a dramatic fall during her semi-final race. The podium was completed by Femke Broeders-Bol of the Netherlands, who broke her national record in a successful transition from the 400m.

In a candid post-race interview with the BBC, an emotional Hodgkinson momentarily took off her silver medal, expressing her mixed feelings about the result.

"I'm kidding, that was a joke," she said, quickly putting the medal back on. "Yeah, a bit of mixed emotions. I think with that level of competition, any medal is a really good achievement. So another one to add to my collection. I can never be disappointed with that. But yeah, I'm defending champion, so I wanted to do that."

The British star admitted she believed she had the race won but acknowledged the unpredictable nature of championship finals.

"I knew it was going to come down to the wire," Hodgkinson explained. "I really thought I was going to win today, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be. I didn't do anything wrong. It's just one of those things."

Werro dictated the pace from the start, a tactic Hodgkinson was content to allow. "I think there were so many different ways it could play out," she said. "Audrey wanted to take it on. With that wind, I was happy to let her. But yeah, we're all really great athletes and I knew it was going to be close. I look forward to the next match-up."

Despite the disappointment, the 24-year-old affirmed that the high level of competition in the 800m motivates her to perform at her best.

"I've said all year it's really motivating to be in such a competitive event. I love it. I think it brings out the best in me," she concluded. "Championship racing is what it's all about. You don't know how it's going to go... I had a pretty good day today, I think. It just didn't go the way that I wanted it to."