Keely Hodgkinson Sets British Indoor 800m Best, Eyes World Record in Liévin
February 14, 2026 (ET) — Keely Hodgkinson delivered a striking solo display at the UK Indoor Championships in Birmingham, clocking 1: 56. 33 in the 800m heats to break her own British indoor record and move to third on the world indoor all-time list. The Olympic champion will skip the final to focus on a world-record bid in France later this week.
Front-running masterclass in a one-round plan
Hodgkinson, 23, executed a fearless front-running race, opening a commanding lead and finishing almost nine seconds ahead of the rest of the field in her heat. The time of 1: 56. 33 shaved nearly a second off her previous national indoor best and was the fastest women’s indoor 800m in almost 24 years.
She had signalled prior to the event that she would contest only the heats, citing a planned appearance in Liévin on Thursday. With qualification for the World Indoor Championships still a priority, Hodgkinson used the single race as a controlled test of speed and fitness. "I had to come to qualify for the Worlds and that is why I was only doing one round, " she said after the run. "It was a good test... We didn't set out to run a world lead, but I started well and just kept it going. It was a nice surprise. It was a really strong day. "
World record target and immediate plans
Hodgkinson has made no secret of her ambition to chase Jolanda Ceplak's long-standing indoor world record of 1: 55. 82 from 2002. After the Birmingham performance she reiterated that the record is a clear target. "I have been very vocal in the past about wanting to get it. I feel like it is my record to break. We'll give it a good go, " she said.
Her schedule now pivots to the meeting in Liévin on Thursday, where conditions and competition will be set up to challenge the historic mark. Skipping the championship final in Birmingham is a calculated move to prioritise recovery and sharpening for that specific attempt.
Day of strong domestic form across the board
Hodgkinson's performance headlined a day of high-quality results in Birmingham. Sprint star Dina Asher-Smith returned to the national indoor scene with authority, taking the women's 60m title in a championship-record 7. 05 seconds — one of the fastest times of her career and a clear statement of form ahead of the World Indoors in Poland.
In the men's short sprint, reigning world and European indoor champion Jeremiah Azu retained the UK 60m crown with a season-best 6. 56. Home-field favourites also shone in the field events: Molly Caudery reclaimed the women's pole vault title with 4. 65m, and Owen Heard won the men's vault at 5. 55m. In the horizontal jumps, Lucy Hadaway topped the women's long jump at 6. 45m while Tito Odunaike claimed the men's triple jump with 15. 45m.
Hurdles produced personal bests and title defences; Abigail Pawlett lowered her own mark to 8. 05 in the women's 60m hurdles, while Daniel Goriola posted a season's best 7. 78 to win the men's event.
With Hodgkinson's British record and other standout performances, the championships provided momentum and selection clarity ahead of the World Indoor Championships in Poland later this month. For Hodgkinson the immediate focus is narrower but bolder: a single, well-targeted attempt at an iconic world indoor record in Liévin later this week.
