It takes something special to beat Keely Hodgkinson and Audrey Werro provided it to spoil the latest British coronation at the Alexander Stadium.
These Friday night lights had long been earmarked to shine on the Olympic champion but she knew she would have it far from all her own way against an opponent who clocked the third-fastest time in history when leading Hodgkinson home at the Stockholm Diamond League in June.
Roared on by a capacity crowd, a welcome first sight of one this week, Hodgkinson gave it everything to get her own back but Werro dug deep to cross in a new Championship record of 1:54.81, breaking a mark which had stood since 1982.
Hodgkinson was two-tenths of a second further back with Femke Broeders-Bol, the third realistic contender for gold in a field stacked with quality, taking bronze.
It meant no European hat-trick for the 24-year-old, who was successful in 2022 and 2024, leaving her with “mixed emotions”.
“When you feel like you’ve not put a foot wrong and it was a great race, and really close, I can’t really be too disappointed,” Hodgkinson said.
“I do think overall (I’m) probably a bit better than that timewise, Audrey would probably say the same thing, but that’s just how the race went.
“We were both really strong, I fought until the end, I thought I was going to have it in the last 50 but ultimately she just had more.
“There were so many ways it could have played out. Audrey wanted to take it on, with that wind I was happy to let her.
“I love a good challenge and that’s what it was.”
Hodgkinson has not had a straightforward summer. A freak training accident left her with “chunks” taken out her knees but she recovered to win the London Diamond League on home soil.
She skipped the Commonwealth Games, watching on from afar as training partner Georgia Hunter Bell won over two laps, to prioritise her appearance in Birmingham and leaves with no regrets.
“I’m in the shape of my life,” she said. “That’s why I feel I was a bit better than that, I’m a bit disappointed it didn’t come out. There’s not really much I can do.
“I think overall I have had a really good season. I have been met with a few challenges along the way but that’s life, it doesn’t always go the way you envisioned.
“It’s how you bounce back from that, blocking out the noise and controlling what you can control. I’ve definitely learned a lot about myself this year with how to manage that.
“Ultimately, it’s another championship done, another medal added to the collection, and I have to be happy with that. I’m not satisfied but we’ll get there.”
The outcome may not have been what the majority of the crowd were hoping for but the showdown more than lived up to expectations.
This was always billed as the unmissable event of the week and intrigue was only heightened following the semi-final drama which saw Werro take a tumble on the final bend only to be reinstated to the final after a successful appeal.
She showed no ill-effects on the way to conquering the best the continent has to offer and with Broeders-Bol also in the mix, the women’s 800m has the head-to-head narrative all disciplines crave.
The road to LA will be fascinating and the controversial long-standing world record of 1:53.28, set by Czech athlete Jarmila Kratochvilova in 1983, will be in the sights of all three.
“We’ve had it for quite a few years now in the women’s 800m,” Hodgkinson said.
“There has always been someone popping out and the depth is really good, we’ve seen that through the rounds here.
“It’s really great and it’s going to push on even more. It’s really motivating to be in such a competitive event, I love it.”
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