World Championships: ‘Golden girl’ Keely Hodgkinson tipped for glory by Iwan Thomas, backs Zharnel Hughes in 100m

Britain’s Keely Hodgkinson is the “golden girl of track and field” and can secure the 800m title at the upcoming World Athletics Championships in Budapest, reckons Iwan Thomas.

Having broken the British record again at June’s Diamond League meeting in Paris, setting a world-leading time in the process, the 21-year-old appears ready to challenge for gold in Hungary – a view shared by Thomas, as he saluted her impact on the sport.

Talking to Eurosport, who will show live coverage of the August 19-27 event, and for whom Thomas will be providing expert insight, the former GB 400m record-holder said: “When I talk about Keely, I think she’s the golden girl of track and field at the moment because I just love her attitude.

“Yes, she performs when it matters, but for her, it’s never ever good enough. I remember chatting to her last year [after] taking a silver at the World Championships. I was like ‘you’re going to look back at this one day and realise, you’re 19, you’ve just got a global medal’.

“But she said ‘no, I’m not happy with it’. I just really like that attitude about her, the fact she knows how good she is, and she knows she’s amongst the best in the world. For her, it’s the gold medal or nothing and that’s what she’ll be looking for in Budapest.

“I just think she’s an inspiration to any future athletes, to any young athletes who watch her, just to realise that, yes it’s great to take part, yes it’s great to get a medal, but let’s be honest about it, you train all year round, you put yourself on the line to be a champion, and that’s what she wants to be.

“She’s been running so well this year, the fastest time in the world. She’s the athlete to beat, and as I said, for her it will be gold or nothing, and I know she can do it.”

Hodgkinson will be part of a strong British team that has multiple medal candidates, with sprint duo Zharnel Hughes and Dina Asher-Smith chief among them.

“His confidence has to be sky high,” Thomas said of Hughes. “He’s broken the British 100 and 200m records this season so we know he’s in great shape. What I love about him is he just goes about his business really quietly.

“He knows he’s in good shape. He doesn’t feel he has to shout about it. He gets on the track with a smile and he finishes the race with a smile, and rightly so.

“He’s in great, great form. I think the 200m is going to be really hard to win. Noah Lyles has said he’s going to run 19.1 [seconds]. So that’s crazy times, but I think Zharnel will run at least 19.6, maybe slightly quicker. I think he’ll break the British record again.

“In the 100m, he’s shown already this year he’s the person to beat. [If] he gets the 100m gold in the bag early, then who knows what that does to his confidence going into the 200m.”

Reflecting on Asher-Smith’s chances, Thomas added: “Dina is a fantastic athlete and she always seems to get it right when it matters.

“If she says she’s in amazing shape, you have to believe her. She’s been great for the sport. You look back at the story of her being a kit carrier in 2012 [at the London Olympics] to where she is now; it’s just a brilliant sporting success.

“She is one who conducts herself the right way on and off track. She really is a role model and I love seeing her do well, it’s fantastic.”

Thomas also made his prediction on a world record that could be under threat during the World Championships.

“[Pole vaulter Armand] ‘Mondo’ Duplantis – nothing he does surprises me. Can he get another world record? Possibly. That would be the icing on the cake. For someone to be crowned world champion and break the world record at the same time, that’s pretty special.”