The 22-year-old middle-distance runner attracted the most important viewers of any sport throughout all the Video games
Keely Hodgkinson’s Olympic 800m gold medal run was essentially the most watched occasion throughout the entire of Paris 2024.
An unbelievable 9.1m folks – on BBC One and iPlayer – tuned in to witness Hodgkinson’s triumph on the Stade de France as she turned the primary British feminine Olympic athletics champion since Jessica Ennis-Hill at London 2012.
Hodgkinson ran 1:56.72 to say the title and noticed off world champion Mary Moraa – the Kenyan beat Hodgkinson to the crown in Budapest final yr – and Tsige Duguma to complete first.
“I’ve labored so arduous during the last yr and you would see how a lot it meant to me as I crossed the road,” mentioned Hodgkinson afterwards. “I can’t imagine I’ve lastly executed it. It means a lot to me. And to do it right here, the place higher?. The viewers was completely unbelievable, it felt like a house crowd to me. So I’m tremendous blissful.
“I wished to be up close to the entrance anyway, in all probability faster after the primary lap, however doing the semi-final and the ultimate again to again everybody was drained. It’s powerful. I trusted myself, I may really feel Mary coming at me down the again straight. However I confirmed composure and I bought to the road first this time.
“I had a cheeky take a look at the display simply to ensure however you’ll be able to’t do something till you cross that line. I’m now the Olympic champion for the following 4 years and no one can take that away from me.”
Keely Hodgkinson celebrates with Trevor Painter (Getty)
Solely Ann Packer (1964) and Kelly Holmes (2004) had received the Olympic girls’s 800m for Nice Britain however Hodgkinson is now a part of that illustrious group.
Hodgkinson’s golden run was adopted intently by Adam Peaty’s silver medal within the 100m with 8.5m.
Noah Lyles’ slim victory within the 100m and Gabby Thomas’ win within the 200m had been watched by 8.4m and seven.9m respectively.
Katarina Johnson-Thompson claimed Olympic heptathlon silver and seven.3m tuned into her 800m.
“The Paris 2024 Olympic Video games throughout this outstanding summer time of sport has seen some really unbelievable medal moments and we now have witnessed a bunch of recent sport stars emerge on a global stage,” mentioned Alex Kay-Jelski, Director of BBC Sport.
“With world-class on-air performances and manufacturing, BBC Sport has been there to champion the athletes and to take the viewers on a journey throughout a number of sporting disciplines.”
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