Some races are about guts more than glory. About pulling it out when the throat is scratchy and the sniffles are worsening by the hour. This was one of those nights for Keely Hodgkinson. But after loading up on First Defence, paracetamol and aspirin, she found a way to rope-a-dope her way to another 800m European championship title.
But it was a close run thing. At one point Slovakia's Gabriela Gajanova briefly threatened an almighty upset, before the Briton found a little extra to win in 1min 58.65sec and by just 0.14. No wonder she puffed her cheeks out at the end.
"It not been the greatest 24 hours," Hodgkinson said. "It's the worst I've ever felt in a race. I felt a little bit of a sore throat and sniffles yesterday in warm-up. And then it got worse. I've been umming and ahhing all day. Can I still put on a performance? I'd be disappointed if I didn't try so I wanted to try. I would have liked a better time but it was just about finding a way to win."
The 22-year-old was such an overwhelming favourite beforehand that a £33 bet on her would have yielded a £1 profit. Such odds didn't appear entirely crazy given that Briton's personal best was three seconds clear of the field.
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