This story starts with two things that happened on 3 March 2002. The European Indoor Championships. Jolanda Ceplak was battling with Stephanie Graf over four laps of an indoor track in Vienna, racing to an 800m World Record of 1:55.82. A couple of thousand kilometres away, Keely Hodgkinson was born. Who knew then that, 8,754 days later, she would be preparing for an attempt to break that still-standing time.

The journey to this moment has not been entirely smooth sailing, particularly when it comes to racing on the indoor oval. Three missed World Indoor Championships, and a World Record attempt – at home – cruelly succumbed to injury last year. Tomorrow evening, in a small town in northern France, the stars might align to allow this fantasy-like story to become reality. Getting to the start line in one piece, and in top fitness, could be seen as almost as big a success as the race result itself.

“I feel like it was kind of taken away from me last year. I was definitely in the shape to do it, but unfortunately the hamstring didn’t want to do it!

I’m excited. I’ve been excited for three weeks, I’ve been counting the days down! Seeing everybody else race, it makes me just want to get out there. I want to seize the opportunity, it’s a quick track here and hopefully we’ll have a smooth race”.

Destiny Unfolding

Lievin is a track Hodgkinson knows well, having raced here twice before. Her last visit, in 2023, brought a victory in 1:57.71. France has delivered plenty of fond memories, culminating of course with Olympic gold in Paris.

It won’t be all plain sailing, with Audrey Werro – the World Leader until last weekend – and 2024 World Indoor Champion Tsige Duguma in the field. However, her own race, and a potential time, are the only thing Keely is focused on. The coincidence of the World Record being set on the day of her birth has not gone unnoticed. It is something of a storyteller’s dream. You could say it’s destiny, if such a thing exists. Keely sees it that way too.

“I’d be fuming if someone else got it before me! It was set on the day I was born, what’s more destiny than that?

I’m going to be 24 next month, so it’s stood for a long time. Jenny [Meadows] was in the stadium when it happened, I was being born out of the womb, they were running fast. I see it as a good challenge; it’s nice to have this challenge early in the season and even more to come outdoors as well”.

Before the outdoor season comes around, however, there is a small matter of the World Indoor Championships. It’s not just a medal that is missing from her CV, but even just an appearance. The past three attempts, including on the day of the race 2022, have fallen short. Next month will hopefully be fourth time lucky. One race at a time, though.

A Warning Shot

No one has got close to Ceplak’s time in the past 24 years. That is until Saturday, when a warning shot was fired at the British Indoor Championships. Not much says ‘I am ready’ more than solo running 1:56.33, the fastest time since the day Hodgkinson was born. Impressively, it came without lights or a pacer, tools that are all too common in today’s racing world.

More impressively, it had been almost three years since her last indoor race. If there were nerves whilst sitting in the call room in the bowels of the Utilita Arena, they didn’t show once on the track.

“Yeah, there were nerves. There’s always some nerves when it comes to racing, especially the first one. I hadn’t run indoors for so long, I had no idea what was going to happen, but I was happy with it.

I wasn’t sure whether to run quick or not. My warm up was great and I thought, ‘well, if I wasn’t going to be here I’d be killing myself in training, you may as well run out and get something out of it’. It was cool”.

Since that race in Birmingham, there has been plenty of talk, almost expectation, that the World Record will fall. The beauty of this sport, however, is that anything can happen. Hodgkinson has worked on cancelling out the external noise and bouncing back from a strong performance.

“It’s definitely something I’ve worked on over the years. Doing something quick like that [British Indoor Championships] and then coming back and still having the drive and motivation to do even more. I think we’ve done a good job, I’m excited for tomorrow and I can’t wait to see what happens”.

Full Circle

You can add an extra chapter to this story. As Keely noted, Jenny Meadows, now part of Keely’s coaching team alongside husband Trevor Painter, was in the stadium that day in Vienna. She had raced in the heats of the 800m one day earlier, but was clipped and did not finish. With the M11 Track Club, it feels full circle that a person who raced at the event where the current World Record was set, may have played a part in seeing it bettered all these years later. As Jenny herself says;

“It’s a really nice moment. I actually remember being in the stand, crying, saying how am I ever supposed to do that? I wasn’t able to do it myself, and I’m so privileged to be in a position where I can hopefully help contribute to somebody who can, because obviously she’s very capable”.

The women’s 800m at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais in Lievin takes place at 21:25 (UK time) on Thursday 19 February.

The post Keely Hodgkinson: Destiny to Reality appeared first on Fast Running.

What’s better than one race in Boston? Two! After a stint training in a sunny Tallahassee, Issy headed to a considerably colder and snowier Boston. First, the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. A meeting she knows well, and which delivered an indoor PB of 2:00.14. A week later, and a couple of kilometres away, a debut visit to the famed Boston University track.

Four laps, and 1:57.43. An outright PB by two seconds, a World Lead, second on the British all-time list. There’s historical significance to it too; it moves Issy into the top-ten fastest women in history indoors. A much-deserved breakthrough, but one that wasn’t exactly unexpected.

“It’s all feeling very real now. I think I was very shocked in the moment, but it made sense with all the training that I’ve done. I’m just really happy about it. So many people have been amazing and congratulatory.

It really didn’t feel like a 1:57. When people talk about doing their quickest times, they say ‘oh, it was easy’ and it’s that everything comes together at the same time. I definitely felt like I crossed that line. I didn’t see the time initially because of the way stuff was placed on the infield. When I turned around and saw the time, I was beyond shocked. It really didn’t feel like I’d run that quickly in that moment.

When they announced Roisin [Willis] had set an American Record, I was like, oh, what does that mean for me? That was quite exciting. I didn’t think it was a British Record, but I knew it must be up there. I immediately ran over and called my coach and said, did you see what just happened? What does it mean?

In hindsight, I can say it was crazy, and I’m absolutely buzzing”.

Something in Common

The setting of the two races in Boston couldn’t be much more different. The first with the glitz, formality and pressure that comes with a World Indoor Tour Gold meeting, especially one overseen by Issy’s sponsors, New Balance. The latter brought none of that; instead, hundreds of collegiate and athlete athletes crammed into a smaller venue. “A more chaotic BMC”, as Issy put it.

However, one commonality between the two races was a strong last 200m, a trademark of many of Issy’s races. For her – and others – it was pleasing to see it back, particularly in races quicker than she has run before.

“I used to have that so much in me, that was sort of my signature thing. I feel like I lost it for a little bit where I was trying to figure out how to race. In the past two races, I’ve really had that in my pocket coming into that last lap. It’s really nice to feel like I’m back to my old ways a little bit.

At the New Balance Grand Prix, I came off that last lap thinking I probably should have run a bit quicker than that. I think I’d underestimated my ability at that point and didn’t really go with the pace. My aim going into the next one was to go with the pacer a little bit more. I did, and I pulled it off, which was great”.

Photo: Justin Britton

Changing Outlook

In a way, it is funny how just under two minutes of racing can change the course of a career. Short-term plans changed. Plans for the 400m at the British Indoor Championships before moving to training for the outdoor season were rewritten. The World Indoors, notably late March this year, moved firmly into vision.

Furthermore, 1:57.43 also secures the qualifying standard for the European Championships in Birmingham and Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. The pressure that can come from having to chase a standard early in a season is removed. The race opportunities afforded to a 1:57 runner can also differ considerably to those of a 1:59 runner. We are speaking less than a week after that run in Boston, but new opportunities have already arisen.

“It has unlocked some doors. I’m going to do another [World Indoor Tour] gold meet, hopefully after the British Champs, which would be great.

The main thing is that I got the Welsh standard for the Commonwealth Games, which I’ve been aiming to get this year. I was originally going to open really early outdoors in order to get that, because the cut off time is in the middle of May. It does change what we thought we’d be doing. The World Indoor Championships are now more on our radar.

We’ll see what happens at the British Champs and then can make a big plan on what happens for the rest of the season”.

Photo: James Rhodes

Back to Birmingham

Birmingham is where Issy calls home. She studied at the University of Birmingham and continues to train there under the guidance of Luke Gunn. Naturally, the prospect of competing at the European Championships in a full Alexander Stadium is an exciting prospect. As is a maiden appearance for Wales at the Commonwealth Games.

“It is really exciting. Even though Glasgow is in Scotland, you still have all of the UK fans there, which would be great. Birmingham is where I train and where I live, so it would be super exciting to be on that team. It will be really hard just to get on that team, which is crazy. For the 800m, there’s four spots because Keeley is reigning champion, which helps in terms of qualification. If I can qualify, then hopefully I can gear towards getting into the final. It is an exciting prospect”.

First, however, all eyes are on the British Indoor Championships, an event Issy won in 2023 and 2025.

“I’m really excited for the British Championships. I’m hoping it will be less tactical and quite fast, but it just depends on what happens on the day. Last year when I won, I thought it was going to be really quick. I thought people were going to go for the time to get into the European Indoors, but they didn’t.

I think I have a kick in me, and I’ve proved that now a couple of times this year. Hopefully people will see that and we’ll try and push it and make it a quick race. The crowd will hopefully spur us on a little bit more, which is really exciting”.

A Potential Trip to Poland

Issy currently sits third on the world list for 2026, behind Keely Hodgkinson and Audrey Werro. The World Indoor Championships are five weeks away, and whilst her team have a grand plan in place, Issy is taking it one race at a time.

“The British Champs is the main thing that I’m looking forward to. We’ll take it from there. Honestly, the World Indoors wasn’t on my radar as much, because we’d been planning to open outdoors so early. I would have been considering the World Indoors more intensely before all of this, if it had been slightly earlier. It would have just given more time. But now, everything’s changed. We’re just trying to figure it out. Luke definitely has a super solid plan in place, he’s very on it. I’m just doing my races”.

The British Indoor Championships final takes place at 15:38 on Sunday 15 February.

Photo: Justin Britton

The post Issy Boffey’s Boston Breakthrough appeared first on Fast Running.

Early morning, Sunday 23 April 2017. Thousands of runners – full of excitement and nerves – headed to Blackheath to start a 26.2 mile adventure. A few miles westward, many younger athletes were simultaneously getting ready for their own adventure. The final three miles of the London Marathon course, warming the roads up before the greats via the Mini London Marathon.

One of those was a seventeen-year-old Julia Paternain. That day, her love of the roads was born. Nine years – and one World Championships bronze medal – later, she returns to the same streets for the full distance. If there is one word that describes how she feels about the prospect of a first race in England since 2018, and a first visit in nearly five years, it is excited.

“I’m extremely excited, I grew up watching the London Marathon! I grew up only an hour away from London, so I’m very familiar with it. My mum worked in London. It’ll be fun just to be able to go home. I have a lot of friends that I’m already planning on seeing after the race”.

Growing Up

Julia now lives in Flagstaff (Arizona), coached by Jack Polerecky as part of the McKirdy Trained group. However, it was at Cambridge & Coleridge that her love for the sport was nurtured, under the guidance of Mark Vile and Ric Park. It is a club and environment to which she places a great deal of gratitude.

“Ric Park and Mark Vile created such a great atmosphere, it was a great community and such a great environment. Everyone at the track was there for a common purpose, everyone just wanted to put in the hard work. Sometimes the weather would suck, it was gross, cold, miserable. But we were all out there, just trying to get better. They instilled in me that you get out what you put in.

I really like Mark, he was a no excuses type of coach. He instilled this mental toughness in me from a young age and I will forever be grateful for that. I remember one time, someone came up to him at training and said, ‘Mark, I’m really tired today’. He was like, ‘You’re a distance runner. You wake up tired, you got to sleep tired, what do you expect?’. Obviously, within reason, he’s not crazy!

I loved that attitude, C&C really did a lot for me. They are people who want to be there for the love of the sport, I think that is great”.

One of her training partners was Tom Keen, who had English Schools success at the same time as Julia. It is nice that, in the same year Julia made her senior international debut Tom did too, at the European Indoor Championships. Running is a small world, as the pair recently met for the first time since.

“I ran into him on the treadmill in a gym a mile from my house! I haven’t seen him since we both won English Schools when we were 15 or 16. It was really cool, a full circle moment”.

Julia & Tom Keen at the English Schools. Photo: Mark Vile

Lighting A Spark

There are many highlights to Julia’s junior career, too many to mention all. Perhaps at the top is back-to-back English Schools titles over 3000m in 2017 and 2018. However, it was a second-place finish at the 2017 Mini London Marathon – on the day Mary Keitany set a (women’s only) World Record – that helped light the spark that led to April’s London debut.

Back then, the Mini London Marathon required qualification and saw the best of the UK’s junior athletes race against each other. It covered the final three miles of the marathon course and was run on marathon morning. A race like little other, at that age at least.

“It’s kind of crazy when I think about it. I think it was one of the first road races that I ever did. I had a great race, it was probably one of the best races of my junior career. I remember finishing and thinking, ‘man, I like the roads, that was cool!’. I remember being really starstruck with the elites running the London Marathon and just thinking about how cool the whole environment was.

I remember really enjoying those last three miles and just the atmosphere. Everything was something I’d never experienced before. It’s going to be amazing to be able to enjoy that for a full marathon.

To look back at it, and to get to live out my childhood dream, is really special. I’m very excited”.

Running at the 2017 Mini London Marathon. Photo: Mark Vile

Early Preparations

There are more similarities between that race and those of a professional athlete than might initially appear. For those reading this who experienced the Mini London Marathon, perhaps memories are flooding back. Early morning coach journeys, hundreds of athletes getting ready in one confined space, plenty of pent-up nerves and excitement. Experiencing that at a young age, including at other races in England, provided a useful grounding for Julia’s professional journey.

“I think the Mini Marathon was a really great experience. It was one of those races where I had no idea what was happening! I remember getting on a warm-up bus and then being with all the other athletes. I was really nervous, just happy to be there.

It was a really great experience because that is truly what a lot of road races are like. There was a warm-up bus in Japan. You’re around a bunch of other athletes. Everyone’s kind of nervous and you’re making small talk.

I think it really did prepare me well. I have to credit a lot to growing up in England and the British races I did. The way they are set up prepares you very well for once you get to the bigger races in your senior career”.

The Road to Tokyo

If the Mini London Marathon was the best race of Julia’s junior career, then last September’s was the best of her senior career. So far.

Much has changed in the eight and a half years between the two. Life is lived in Flagstaff with the McKirdy Trained group. It was at the McKirdy Micro: The Road to Tokyo that Julia made her marathon debut, finishing in 2:27:09.

The race’s name is apt, given six months later it was where Julia found herself. The World Championships, as (literally) the last qualifier. After two- and a-bit hours on the roads of the Japanese capital and one lap of the Olympic Stadium, a bronze medal awaited. The first for Uruguay in World Championships history. Disbelief, for Julia and those watching, made for a heartwarming reaction. It was a proud moment, and one that took a while to sink in.

“I had a lot of moments in my career where I very nearly quit running, so it was a really just great experience to be able to put together this huge body of work that I feel like I’ve trained for my whole life. It sounds cliche, but it was really, really satisfying to kind of see it all come together.

Only in the last month has it sunk in. It was all kind of ‘go, go, go’, it didn’t feel real. I was on cloud nine for a very long time. During Christmas and New Year, I think life and the world has kind of moved on. It’s allowed me time for it to sink in and realise, oh, that really did happen!”.

Photo: James Rhodes

Full Trust

Jack Polerecky and James McKirdy guide Julia through her senior and professional career, just as Cambridge & Coleridge did when a junior. It’s a close-knit group, and Julia credits their guidance as the biggest factor in her Tokyo success.

“My team out here is great. I would consider all my teammates as friends and then teammates. It’s really enjoyable, because I get to show up to training and enjoy the people I’m around. I really enjoy the people I have around me. Not only are they just great people to be around, but I trust everything that they tell me so, so much.

They really know what they’re doing, especially when it comes to the marathon. In preparing for Tokyo, they knew the key thing was to stay cool and get all your fuelling in. You could really see that that was one of the main things that helped in my race.

I truly trust all the advice they give me. I can stand on that start line without thinking, ‘did I do this right, did I do that right?’. I know I did everything in my power to be here and I did the best I could. Just having that blind faith in them is this really great. Mentally, it really helps give me a lot of confidence.

They’re just great people. After the Worlds, for example, my agent said it will be a bit of an emotional roller coaster. It is a really great thing, but there’s the highs and the lows, the post-Olympic blues people call it. Just having someone that fully understands that is really is really useful”.

Photo: Bjorn Paree

Back to London

After running 2:27 in her first two marathons, Julia’s primary goal for London is to run faster than she has before. Continuing to learn too, given the event is still relatively new. As Julia puts it, “going through the process of the marathon build and seeing what I can get out of myself is what really excites me”. There is more to the race than that, however. Reconnecting with the younger self whose dreams were born in London all those years ago.

“I am excited to be able to go back and almost reconnect with like the younger athlete in me. I haven’t been home in so long and I’m excited to experience the British distance running scene again. It’s such a great environment back home, everyone really does it for the love of the sport.

I’m just excited I’m getting to run the London Marathon. It’ll be very special, regardless of whatever the outcome is”.

The post Julia Paternain: London Calling appeared first on Fast Running.

Almost every possible award or honour can be found on the CVs of the elite women’s field for the 2026 TCS London Marathon. Reigning World Champion? Yes, Peres Jepchirchir. Reigning Olympic Champion? Yes, Sifan Hassan. Reigning London Marathon Champion? Yes, Tigst Assefa. That is only the start.

That trio – and their many other accomplishments – need no introduction. It will be the first time all three have stood on the same start line since the Olympic Games in Paris. They are not the only athletes to look out for, however.

Hellen Obiri will make her TCS London Marathon debut, favouring the capital ahead of her usual visit to Boston. She won last year’s New York City Marathon and is a two-time winner in Boston.

Another returning winner will be Joyciline Jepkosgei, victorious in 2021. Most recently, she moved to fourth on the all-time list when winning the Valencia Marathon last month in 2:14:00.

Uruguay’s Julia Paternain will return to the country she grew up in to make her London debut. You can hear from Julia about returning to familiar ground here. Ethiopians Megertu Alemu and Degitu Azimeraw have run inside 2:18:00 and also take to the London streets.

They join the strong British field which includes Eilish McColgan, Charlotte Purdue, Jess Warner-Judd and Abbie Donnelly.

TCS London Marathon Elite Women Field

• Tigst Assefa (ETH, PB 2:11:53)
• Sifan Hassan (NED, 2:13:44)
• Joyciline Jepkosgei (KEN, 2:14:00)
• Peres Jepchirchir (KEN, 2:14:43)
• Megertu Alemu (ETH, 2:16:34)
• Hellen Obiri (KEN, 2:17:41)
• Degitu Azimeraw (ETH, 2:17:58)
• Catherine Relin Amanang’ole (KEN, 2:20:34)
• Charlotte Purdue (GBR, 2:22:17)
• Laura Luengo (ESP, 2:22:31)
• Rose Harvey (GBR, 2:23:21)
• Abbie Donnelly (GBR, 2:24:11)
• Florencia Borelli (ARG, 2:24:18)
• Eilish McColgan (GBR, 2:24:25)
• Jessica Warner-Judd (GBR, 2:24:45)
• Fadouwa Ledhem (FRA, 2:25:50)
• Marta Galimany (ESP, 2:26:14)
• Lucy Reid (GBR, 2:26:35)
• Julia Paternain (URU, 2:27:09)
• Louise Small (GBR, 2:27:48)
• Alice Wright (GBR, 2:28:48)
• Verity Hopkins (GBR, 2:31:19)

The post Impressive Elite Women’s Field at TCS London Marathon appeared first on Fast Running.

A strong British contingent will take to the start line of the TCS London Marathon on Sunday 26 April, spearheaded by Emile Cairess and Eilish McColgan.

Cairess, who’s PB is 2:06:46, will have Mo Farah’s British Record (2:05:11) in his sights. 2:05:39 from 2019, the fastest by a British athlete at the London Marathon. He missed last year’s event through injury and was forced to withdraw from the World Championships in Tokyo mid-race.

After making his debuts at last November’s New York City Marathon, Patrick Dever will also compete. Dever finished an impressive fourth in his marathon debut, and will look to impress again at his second marathon major. They will be joined by Phil Sesemann, who improved his PB to 2:07:10 at the Valencia Marathon last month.

With Mahamed Mahamed, Weynay Ghebresilasie and Tewelde Menges due to race, six British men who have run inside 2:10:00 feature on the start list.

Eilish McColgan returns to the capital after a debut of 2:24:25 last year. Most recently, she set a European Record of 30:07 at the Valencia 10k. She will be joined by Jess Warner-Judd, who like Dever made her debut in New York last year. Warner-Judd finished seventh in 2:24:45. She knows the final part of the course well, having won the Mini London Marathon four times.

Also due to race are Charlotte Purdue and Abbie Donnelly, who has improved to 2:24:11 after making her marathon debut last year.

British Male Elite Field

– Emile Cairess (GBR, 2:06:46)

– Mahamed Mahamed (GBR, 2:07:05)

– Philip Sesemann (GBR, 2:07:10)

– Patrick Dever (GBR, 2:08:58)

– Weynay Ghebresilasie (GBR, 2:09:50)

– Tewelde Menges (GBR, 2:09:58)

– George James (GBR, 2:10:10)

– Jake Smith (GBR, 2:11:00)

– Marc Scott (GBR, 2:11:19)

– Jack Rowe (GBR, 2:12:31)

– Andrew Fyfe (GBR, 2:13:20)

– Alex Milne (GBR, 2:14:03)

– Peter Le Grice (GBR, 2:14:45)

– Sean Hogan (GBR, 2:14:51)

– Christopher Thomas (GBR, 2:14:55)

– Jake Barraclough (GBR, 2:14:55)

– Chris Perry (GBR, 2:14:57)

– David Bishop (GBR, 2:15:16)

– Charlie Sandison (GBR, 2:15:38)

– William Mycroft (GBR, 2:15:54)

– Alfie Manthorpe (GBR, Debut)

British Women Elite Field

– Charlotte Purdue (GBR, PB 2:22:17)

– Rose Harvey (GBR, 2:23:21)

– Abbie Donnelly (GBR, 2:24:11)

– Eilish McColgan (GBR, 2:24:25)

– Jessica Warner-Judd (GBR, 2:24:45)

– Lucy Reid (GBR, 2:26:35)

– Louise Small (GBR, 2:27:48)

– Alice Wright (GBR, 2:28:48)

– Verity Hopkins (GBR, 2:31:19)

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After over 300 parkruns were cancelled last weekend due to Storm Goretti, service returned to normal this week. Those out to complete a 5k at 09:00 on Saturday included Laura Hesketh and Harry Sinclair, who top the parkrun rankings this weekend.

Impressively, both ran at Alexandra parkrun in Moss Side. It has been quite a while since both fastest times came at the same venue – there are no questions this week as to which the fastest course was! Laura ran 16:30 whilst Harry ran 15:12. With Power of 10 offline as it transitions to a new platform, there is less context on these runs than usual.

Best of the Rest

Louise Small and Aga Gajownik complete the women’s podium this weekend. Louise ran 16:46 at Burnham and Highbridge, whilst Aga’s time was just one second behind (16:47). She too was at Alexandra.

On the men’s side, Stephen Lyster’s 15:15 at Belfast Victoria puts him second on the rankings. Four seconds back, and across the Irish Sea, Oliver James completes the podium with 15:19 at Albert parkrun in Middlesbrough.

Fastest Course

It’s an easy one this weekend – Alexandra, Moss Side!

Women’s Rankings

Men’s Rankings

The post 10 fastest UK parkrun times on 17 January appeared first on Fast Running.

A lot has happened since Keely Hodgkinson last competed indoors. That is understandable, given over 1,000 days have passed (1,048 at the time of writing, to be precise). The long-awaited return of the Olympic Champion to the indoor oval is getting closer, as organisers of the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais have confirmed Hodgkinson will headline their 800m on Thursday 19 February.

The competition and venue are closely associated with fast middle distance performances. Last year, Jakob Ingebrigtsen broke the World Indoor Record for the mile and 1500m (in the same race). It is one Hodgkinson knows well herself, having competed in both 2021 and 2023. At the latter, she won in a then-PB of 1:57.71. Ten days later, she improved to 1:57.18 at the Birmingham Indoor Grand Prix. It was an impressive trio of races:

• 8 February: 1:57.87, Torun (Poland)
• 15 February: 1:57.71, Lievin (France)
• 25 February: 1:57.18, Birmingham (United Kingdom)

Her last race indoors was her fastest, but she has been vocal in her desire to run faster. Jolanda Ceplak’s World Indoor Record of 1:55.82 has previously been talked about, by Keely and others. It feels destined that, if anyone is to break it, it should be her. Afterall, it was set on the day she was born.

When she last competed indoors, Hodgkinson had an outright PB of 1:55.88. Since then, she has improved by over one second to 1:54.61, one of three runs inside 1:55. One of those – 1:54.74 – came in her return last season, after over a year of no racing. What might be in store indoors this year?

If she is to compete at the World Indoor Championships, the one major medal missing from her CV, she’ll need to compete at the British Indoor Championships. They take place the weekend before Lievin; a perfect tune-up, perhaps.

The Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, part of the World Indoor Tour Gold, takes place on Thursday 19 February in Lievin (France).

The post Indoor Return for Keely Hodgkinson appeared first on Fast Running.

Men’s 1500m (four races)

Four men in the field have PBs inside 3:40, all set last year. With a PB of 3:36.12 set last July, Frenchman Corentin Tixier is fastest. He is currently based at Loughborough University. He is joined by Tonbridge brothers Jack and Ted Higgins.

Jack, part of the quartet who won silver in the mixed relay at last month’s European Cross Country Championships, has never raced the distance indoors. More frequently seen over 800m, including at the European Indoor Championships. His 1500m PB came at the BMC Grand Prix in Birmingham last summer.

His brother Ted had an excellent December. He won the Southern Indoor Championships 3000m in 7:57.31, his first time under eight minutes, before a step-change 5k PB of 13:38 on New Year’s Eve. His last indoor 1500m was seven years ago, with his outdoor best now 3:37.36.

Harry Wakefield of Salford Harries is the fourth athlete with a sub-3:40 best (3:38.57). He is a BMC regular and won the ‘b’ 800m at this meeting last year.

Also due to race is Will Rabjohns, stepping up in distance from his superb PB of 1:45.41 at the Watford Grand Prix last summer. That is the second fastest time by an U20 athlete in a BMC race.

Women’s 1500m (two races)

Holly Dixon has the quickest PB of those entered. Like Jack, she was part of the medal winning mixed relay team at the European Cross Country Championships. That outing in Lagoa was Holly’s Great Britain debut. Impressively, she set PBs at every distance contested last year from 800m to 5k. Her 800m and 1500m PBs both came in BMC races.

Molly Hudson has twice competed at this event, both times over 800m. Much of her racing last season came stateside at Boston College, with notable indoor times over 800m (2:04.61) and 1500m (4:14.71). Those are just outside her outright PBs. She ran at three BMC meetings last year.

Charlotte Buckley knows the Sheffield track well having won the BUCS Indoor Championships 800m last year. She raced at three BMC meetings last year, setting her 1500m PB of 4:16.38 at the Twickenham Record Breaker Races.

Abigail McAndrew of Blackburn Harriers and Aberdeen’s Hannah Cameron are also due to compete.

Men’s 3000m (three races)

The men’s 3000m is often a highlight in Sheffield and this year looks no different. Six athletes entered have run under eight minutes, three doing so last year. The quickest on paper is Joe Tuffin. He has had excellent start to 2026 with a 28:25 PB at the Valencia 10k. He ran at four Grand Prix fixtures last summer and finished fourth in last year’s 3000m.

James McMurray also ran in the 3000m last year, finishing eighth in 7:59.74.

Stepping up from last year’s b-race, where he finished second, is Rowan Miell-Ingram. He too has had a good start to the year, running a PB of 7:57.08 at the Scottish 3000m Championships. He is joined by brother Quinn Miell-Ingram in the field, who competed at the European Cross Country Championships in December.

Andrew Penney, Ben Potrykus, Biruk Aduna Kebede and Alex Melloy are also entered. The first three have run inside eight minutes previously, with Alex just outside.

Women’s 3000m (one race)

The women’s 3000m may miss some of the star power of previous editions, but an interesting field will compete. Beth Barlow returns to Sheffield after racing the same distance in 2024. It will be a first race track in England in over a year, having spent last year at Florida State University. Her PB of 9:12.29, set indoors last year, is fastest in the field.

She is joined by BMC regular Lauren Church. Lauren missed much of the summer but returned with a 15:54 5k PB on New Year’s Eve in London. She ran 9:23.67 in her one and only 3000m (excluding races as a junior over ten years ago), but has run faster on the roads.

Men’s & Women’s 800m

There will be six men’s and four women’s 800m races to kickstart the day’s racing. As usual in Sheffield, these will not be paced. They will also follow the new World Athletics rules that use a revised break point.

With PBs of 2:00.96 and 2:01.09 respectively, Lucy Armitage and Emily Simpson lead the women’s entries. The men’s field includes three who have run inside 1:48 (Nirobi Smith-Mills, Joseph Owen and Alex Glew). A further nine have run under 1:50.

Full start lists and timetable can be found here.

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There are many things that Jake Wightman and Josh Kerr have in common. They’re both Scottish, that’s an obvious one. They’re both from Edinburgh AC. They’ve both held the title of 1500m World Champion. They’ve raced each other on the track, on the roads and even on the cross country. It is almost ten years exactly since Kerr and Wightman first faced each other in a race – 9 January 2016. They both competed in the Scottish Inter District Championships at the Great Edinburgh Cross Country International. Wightman finished second and Kerr eighth. It is their only cross country competition together.

There is one thing they have not both done, however. Race each other indoors. That is set to change on Sunday 1 February, when both line up for the two miles at the Millrose Games. It will be a day of firsts for Wightman, as it will also be his debut at the Millrose Games. Previously announced, for Josh Kerr it is a distance and venue well known. He set the World Indoor Record of 8:00.67 at the 2024 edition of the event.

One week earlier, Wightman will race in more familiar territory at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix. There, he will race over 2000m. They will be his only indoor races of the season.

The post Jake Wightman & Josh Kerr’s First Indoor Race appeared first on Fast Running.