Georgia Hunter Bell wins 800m Diamond League meeting and reveals she will seek advice of Dame Kelly Holmes ahead of Tokyo World Championships

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Georgia Hunter Bell emerged from the shadows of training partner Keely Hodgkinson to give the London Stadium something to shout about on a day of shocks with both Noah Lyles and Britain's reigning world champion Josh Kerr beaten.
On the day that Britain launched its bid to host the 2029 world championships, 31-year-old Hunter Bell provided an extra feelgood factor for a capacity 60,000 crowd attending the Diamond League meeting.
Despite being a bronze medallist in last year's Olympics 1500metres, Hunter Bell remains relatively unsung compared to middle-distance queen Hodgkinson, the reigning BBC Sports Personality of the Year.
But with her friend injured, Hunter Bell took full advantage to power away from a strong 800metres field to win in a season's best 1m56.74s with home athletes Jemma Reekie and Laura Muir down the field.
Hunter Bell could now double up in the 800 and 1500 at September's world championship in Tokyo but will first ask the advice of Dame Kelly Holmes – who won Olympic gold in both.
'Technically it is an option because the schedule is generous for it,' she said.
'I might reach out to Kelly and see what she thinks. I don't know. It is hard but one event completes before the second one starts.
On the GB bid, she added: 'You feel so supported in this stadium. It was so noisy for us British girls in the race, it was incredible. Having the worlds here would be incredible.'
And though Hodgkinson's hamstring issues have prevented her from racing since the Olympics, Hunter Bell expects her rival to be on the start line in Tokyo.
'She's good. She's working her way back,' confirmed Hunter Bell. 'No-one wants to be racing more than Keely. She'll be back soon. We train with each other and make each other quicker.'
Elsewhere, there was disappointment for Kerr in the 1500metres as he was outpaced by teenage Kenyan sensation Phanuel Koech and finished second.
Fourth-place Jake Wightman doesn't think Koech's eye-catching time of 3m28.82s should make him favourite for the worlds.
'The Diamond League are pace races. It is different in championships when there is no one to dictate pace and you need to be astute,' he said.
An even bigger upset came in the men's 100m when the supposed fastest man on the planet, Olympic 100m champion Lyles, looked sluggish next to Jamaican rival Oblique Seville who clocked 9.86s.
On the GB bid, she added: 'You feel so supported in this stadium. It was so noisy for us British girls in the race, it was incredible.'
In mitigation, it was Lyles' first race at the distance since Paris and he insisted afterwards: 'There is no need to panic.'
Charlie Dobson was a British winner in the 400metres ahead of compatriot Matt Hudson-Smith but there was disappointment for other home favourites Dina Asher-Smith, Katerina Johnson-Thompson and Molly Caudery in their individual events.
Earlier in the day, Athletics Ventures had announced a GB bid for the 2029 world championships and world Paralympics, backed by Prime Minister Keir Stramer who said: 'Bringing them here would be a moment of great national pride and provide a boost for businesses and jobs.'
However, the President of World Athletics, Sebastian Coe, warned there will be stiff competition from other major cities in different continents.
He said: 'London has some very clear and obvious assets. We are an athletics-loving nation and people turn up. But it will be competitive. There are a lot of good cities out there,' he said.
'I'm not going to give a list of runners and riders but there are cities who have already expressed an interest and are engaging with us.'
There was no louder cheer in the old Olympic Stadium yesterday than the British 4x400metre relay squad receiving their rightful gold medal from the 1997 world championships – 28 years late.
Originally finishing second to USA, they were upgraded to first in 2008 when it was discovered Antonio Pettigrew in the American team was a drugs cheat.
It's taken all this time since for Roger Black, Iwan Thomas, Jamie Baulch, Mark Richardson and Mark Hilton to all be available at the same British meet to receive their gongs.
The moment had extra poignancy for Thomas, who has given his medal to six-year-old son Teddy, who spent 10 days in intensive care as a baby after catching Group B Strep (GBS) that causes breathing difficulties.
The ceremony also had a tinge of sadness as Pettigrew committed suicide in 2010, aged 42. 'I'd rather him have the gold medal than taking his life,' said Baulch.