Mary Moraa and Keely Hodgkinson race in the Commonwealth Games 800m final (© Getty Images)
Keely Hodgkinson, Mary Moraa and Diribe Welteji are the first athletes to be announced for the ORLEN Copernicus Cup, the third Gold level meeting in the 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold series, on 8 February.
The trio will clash in the 800m, their first indoor three-way battle following their exciting head-to-heads during this year’s outdoor season.
After securing Olympic 800m silver in Tokyo last year, Britain’s Hodgkinson claimed a medal of the same colour at the World Athletics Championships Oregon22. Kenya’s Moraa got bronze and Ethiopia’s Welteji finished fourth in a race won by USA’s Athing Mu.
Hodgkinson and Moraa then went head-to-head again at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Moraa taking the title and Hodgkinson securing another silver. More success was to follow for Moraa as she won the Diamond Trophy in Zurich, the 2021 champion Hodgkinson this time finishing fifth.
While Moraa’s career has not so far included any indoor racing, her outdoor PB stands at 1:56.71, achieved in Oregon. Hodgkinson ran her indoor PB, a British record of 1:57.20, in Birmingham in February, and her outdoor best is 1:55.88.
A total of seven meetings feature in the 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold series, which starts in Karlsruhe, Germany, on 27 January before stops in Boston, Torun, New York, Lievin, Madrid and Birmingham.
The women’s 800m is among the scoring disciplines on the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold for 2023. Each athlete’s best three results will count towards their overall point score. The athlete with the most points in each scoring discipline at the end of the tour will be declared the winner and will be awarded a USD$10,000 bonus. They will also be offered a wild card entry for the World Athletics Indoor Championships Glasgow 24, subject to selection by the athlete's national federation.
For further information on the ORLEN Copernicus Cup, visit the event website.
