UK Athletics Championships 2026: Keely Hodgkinson pulls out of 400m final

Emotional Hodgkinson pulls out of UK 400m final

Keely Hodgkinson looks on and bites her lip before withdrawing from the women's 400m final at the UK Athletics Championships Image source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Keely Hodgkinson was waiting in her lane before stepping off the track

ByBen Collins

BBC Sport journalist
  • Published

Keely Hodgkinson pulled out of the 400m final at the UK Athletics Championships moments before Sunday's race.

The Olympic 800m champion has been competing over the shorter distance in a bid to improve her first-lap speed and challenge for the 800m world record this summer.

After qualifying from Saturday's heats, she warmed up for the final in Birmingham but stepped off the track right before the finalists were put under starters' orders.

Hodgkinson looked emotional as she stood at the side of the track before making her way back inside the Alexander Stadium.

The 24-year-old endured an injury-disrupted 2025 and her shock withdrawal on Sunday comes four weeks before the London Diamond League meeting, which she had earmarked for a tilt at the 800m world record.

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