Hodgkinson smashes world short track 800m record in Liévin with 1:54.87

Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson produced the standout moment of the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais Trophée EDF, taking almost a second off the world short track 800m record with 1:54.87* at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Liévin on Thursday (19).

In what was the penultimate Gold stop on the World Indoor Tour, Hodgkinson’s performance was one of five world-leading marks and two meeting records set at the Arena Stade Couvert. Many of the night’s winners now turn their attention towards the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26, which begin in just over a month’s time.

Hodgkinson will be seeking another global gold next month in Poland, but in Liévin her focus was firmly on the clock.

The Briton followed the pacemaker for the first half and went through 200m in 26.80 and 400m in 56.01. Switzerland’s Audrey Werro, the 2025 Diamond League champion, tried to go with her, but Hodgkinson continued to extend her lead with every step.

By 600m, reached in 1:25.06, she was away and clear. She stretched away on the final lap and crossed the line in 1:54.87, a 0.95-second improvement on the previous world short track record set by Slovenia’a Jolanda Ceplak on 3 March 2002 – the day Hodgkinson was born.

“That was really fun,” said the 23-year-old, who opened her season last weekend with a 1:56.33 run at the UK Indoor Championships. “I've been really looking forward to this for a good few weeks, so thank you for the amazing crowd – I could hear them all the way around.”

Werro finished second in 1:58.38 and Olympic silver medallist Tsige Duguma was third (1:58.83).

Hodgkinson's performance tonight is just 0.26 shy of her outdoor PB. It's the 15th fastest 800m run in history in any conditions, indoors or out.

Karalis scales six metres

World and Olympic medallist Emmanouil Karalis maintained his winning streak in the pole vault and produced the first six-metre vault of the year.

The Greek vaulter had first-time clearances at every height up to and including his winning mark. He went on to have some solid attempts at 6.07m, while Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen finished ahead of USA’s Zachery Bradford on countback, both clearing 5.90m.

Two-time world indoor champion Freweyni Hailu got her 2026 campaign off to a strong start by winning a high-quality 3000m. She followed the pacemaker through the first 1000m in 2:48.57, then maintained that pace until the end, winning in a world-leading 8:24.59.

Fellow Ethiopian Aleshign Baweke was second in 8:26.29, while world and Olympic medallist Nadia Battocletti clocked an Italian record of 8:26.44, just 0.03 shy of the European short track record.

Australia’s Jessica Hull was a clear winner of the women’s 2000m – the distance for which she holds the world best outdoors. The world and Olympic medallist produced the second-fastest indoor clocking in history, 5:26.68 – three seconds shy of the world short track best – to win from Portugal’s Salomé Afonso (5:30.31).

The other world-leading mark of the night came from Algeria’s Yasser Triki, who bounded out to 17.35m to win the men’s triple jump. The 2024 world indoor silver medallist took an early lead with a second-round leap of 17.12m, then extended his winning margin in the final round. Jamaica’s Jordan Scott finished second with 17.11m.

Crestan cracks 1:44 once more

Two weeks after breaking his own Belgian short track 800m record, Eliott Crestan almost revised it again.

The two-time world indoor medallist passed through half-way in 50.49 ahead of Poland’s Maciej Wyderka. Just 0.18 separated them with one lap to go, Crestan having passed 600m in 1:17.36, but he kicked clear on the final lap to win in 1:43.91, smashing Adam Kszczot’s meeting record from 2012 and coming just 0.08 shy of the indoor best he clocked in Ostrava earlier this month.

As was the case in Ostrava, Wyderka once again finished second (1:44.64), just ahead of Algerian duo Slimane Moula (1:44.80) and Mohamed Al Gouaned (1:44.92).

Two-time world indoor champion Devynne Charlton of The Bahamas notched up her first victory of the season, winning the women’s 60m hurdles in a season’s best of 7.79. The world record-holder defeated a quality field that included Poland’s Pia Skrzyszowska (7.83) and world champion Ditaji Kambundji (7.84).

The men’s event was even closer with home favourite Just Kwao-Mathey of France crossing the line level with Spain’s Enrique Llopis – the latter equalling his own national record – in 7.45, finishing ahead of USA’s Johnny Brackins (7.50).

Two hours before her training partner made history in the women’s 800m, world and Olympic medallist Georgia Hunter Bell won the women’s 1500m. The Briton finished in 4:00.21, just 0.17 shy of the season’s best she set when winning in Karlsruhe earlier this month, but this time her winning margin over Ethiopia’s Birke Haylom (4:01.17) was even bigger. Ethiopian youngster Saron Berhe was third in 4:01.51.

World champion Isaac Nader was similarly convincing in winning the men’s 1500m. He crossed the line in 3:32.44, a slight improvement on his own Portuguese indoor record. Italy’s Federico Riva (3:33.04) and Ireland’s Andrew Coscoran (3:33.09) also set national records in second and third, moving inside the top 20 on the world short-track all-time list. It was just the second time in history that six men have broken 3:34 in the same indoor 1500m race.

For a moment it looked as though the crowd would be treated to a home victory in the men’s 3000m. Azeddine Habz, the 2025 world leader over 1500m, surged to the front with 700m to go and opened a 15-metre gap with two laps remaining. But Ethiopia’s Addisu Yihune responded on the final lap, moving into the lead with 100m to go and winning in 7:33.58 from Kenya’s Jacob Krop (7:34.68) as Habz faded to fourth.

Elsewhere, two-time world medallist Leonardo Fabbri won the men’s shot put with 21.82m ahead of USA’s Joe Kovacs (21.40m), while Slovenia’s Tina Sutej cleared 4.70m to win the women’s pole vault on countback from New Zealand’s Imogen Ayris and USA’s world champion Katie Moon.

Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

*Subject to the usual ratification procedure