Georgia Hunter Bell takes silver and Keely Hodgkinson bronze in 800m final

Georgia Hunter Bell pipped training partner and Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson to an 800 metres silver medal by one one hundredth of a second on the final night of action at the World Athletics championships in Tokyo.

The British duo were in gold and silver medal position – led by Hodgkinson – on the home straight until Kenyan Lilian Odira surged past them both to take gold in a championship record 1:54.62, leaving the British runners to battle each other for second.

Hodgkinson and Hunter-Bell had to wait before screens inside the stadium showed the latter, who claimed 1500m bronze on her Olympic debut in Paris last summer, had gotten over the line faster by the finest of margins in 1:54.90.

Hunter Bell had debated racing at both distances at these championships before deciding to focus on the 800m, and was even holding camp room-mates with bronze medallist Hodgkinson.

It was nevertheless a brave and determined showing for Hodgkinson, who just last month returned from a 376-day injury-plagued absence after becoming the Olympic champion.

“I thought I had it, but she (Odira ) came past. I did my best to hold on,” Hodgkinson told BBC Sport.

“In that last 10m my legs were falling off a little bit because the first lap was so quick. I ran it how I ran it and this is what the result is.”

Hodgkinson added: “I was in it to win it and when you do go for the gold, you do risk coming off the podium, or second or third. I am proud of both of us. We both got a medal.”

Hunter Bell said: “I wanted to show what I could do in the 800m and I knew I would have to come into it fresh if I wanted to get a medal,” she said.

“Doing both is so hard. The competition is so good, so I am just really proud I put all my eggs in one basket, and am so happy, the fastest time I have ever run.”

Injuries at these championships to 2024 world indoor pole vault champion Molly Caudery, Josh Kerr, who entered as the defending 1500m champion, 400 metres duo Samuel Reardon and – all but confirmed – Matt Hudson-Smith, the individual Olympic silver medallist last summer, had already dented British medal hopes, dialling up the pressure on Hodgkinson and Hunter Bell to deliver.

In the end Great Britain finished with five medals – silvers for Hunter Bell, Jake Wightman (1500m) and Amy Hunt (200m) Hodgkinson’s bronze, and another of the same colour for 2023 heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson.

The women’s 4×100 relay quartet of Dina Asher-Smith, Hunt, Desiree Henry and Daryll Neita were Great Britain’s last hope for a sixth medal but finished just off the podium in fourth.

Asher-Smith said: “Obviously we wanted to come home with a gold medal, that’s all we ever aim for, but we will go back, analyse it, do all that stuff we are so great at doing. If we are giving it everything, there is never going to be disappointment, we will learn, move forward and increase it next time.”

Lee Thompson, Toby Harries, Lewis Davey and Charlie Dobson finished sixth in the men’s 4x400m relay in 3:03.05. Botswana were the winners, the United States took silver, and South Africa claimed bronze.

George Mills, the 2024 European silver medallist, did not stop for comment after finishing last in the 5000m in 13:44.88, and there was a seventh-place finish for high jumper Morgan Lake in her final with a best-effort 1.93 metres.