by Stuart Weir
Women’s 800 final preview
We now know the eight finalists for the women’s 800m – two from Ethiopia, and one each from
Kenya, South Africa, France, USA, St Vincent and Britain. The women’s 800m has really developed over the recent period. In the Paris semi-finals there were 24 athletes with 21 going under 2m. The three winners were
Keely Hodgkinson 1:56.86
Mary Moraa 1:57.88
Tsige Duguma 1:57.47
The slowest qualifier for the final ran 1:58:06. And the unluckiest athlete was Britain’s Jemma Reekie who was eighth faster – the fastest not to make the final. This was the first time we had seen a repechage round and none of the six who came through that process into the semi-finals reached the final, although Kolberg of Germany did run a PR in the attempt.
Keely Hodgkinson will be many people’s favorite but Mary Moraa cannot be discounted. She is, after all, the reigning world champion. The two Ethiopians Diguma and Mesele will also be strong.
With three British athletes in the race we had hopes of two or even three in the final – there had been three in the final in Tokyo – Hodgkinson, Reekie and Alexandra Bell. 17 year old Phoebe Gill was first up, She ran 1:58.47 for fourth place, How can you criticize a 17 year-old whose aim for the season was the European U18? But perhaps she ran too much in lane 2 and 3. Her comments were: “I’m very emotional right now, and that is not from being sad – that’s from being proud of myself! It’s a whirlwind of emotions coming into the Games and performing in front of that many people. I’m not used to that. But to go out there and give it my all on that track. I’m just so happy to get through one round and to say that I’m an Olympian now! I feel so mature in myself, and I’m so happy that I was able to face it and not back out. Onwards and upwards from here”. It is an amazing thought but she will still be in her 20s by the 2036 games!
Again Jemma Reekie ran well, eighth fastest, in second place most of the race but unable to hold off late challenges, slipping to fifth. Her time was 1:58.01 (compare her 1:56.90 in Tokyo 2021). Her assessment was: “It was really tough, and I’m in the best shape of my life, and I was coming here to fight for one of those medals. But it’s the Olympics, it’s really tough out there. I was happy with the way I ran it but I’ll have to watch the race back and see what I can do better. I ran it the way I wanted to, and I think I ran it my way to give myself the best shot of a final”.
Hodgkinson was the fastest finisher and capable of winning races in different ways but she has the added pressure of chasing a first global title.
