Keely Hodgkinson 'class of her own' says 1964 winner

The first British woman ever to win Olympic gold in the 800m race says Team GB's newest champion Keely Hodgkinson is in a "class of her own".

Anne Packer, who now lives in Congleton, crossed the finish line in world record time when she won in 1964 - a race she almost decided to skip to go shopping.

In Paris on Monday, Hodgkinson dominated the field to finish in one minute 56.72 seconds.

Speaking to BBC North West Tonight, Packer said Hodgkinson put on a "magnificent performance" to become only the third female 800m gold medallist for Great Britain.

Packer, who said she watched the race with two of her sons, said: "It was a magnificent performance and although she had been tipped to win, all sorts of things can happen and they do.

"She ran a magnificent race and she was really in a class of her own."

Hodgkinson, from Atherton, had finished second at successive World Championships after claiming silver on her Olympic debut in Tokyo 2021.

In Paris, however, Hodgkinson followed in the footsteps of Packer and Dame Kelly Holmes, who won gold in Athens 2004.

While the 22-year-old was a heavy favourite, Packer's win in Tokyo 1964 was much more unexpected.

She said she had been a favourite for the 400m event, but was beaten "fair and square" on the day by Australia's Betty Cuthbert.

She qualified for the final in the 800m, but had never run the distance at international level and suggested to her late husband, fellow athlete Robbie Brightwell, that she might go shopping.

"I really had no idea about how to run one and I did say to Robbie I thought I might go and get some souvenirs to take home for the family and maybe give it a miss but he wasn't having any, so there we go", she said.

In the event, Packer started to fall behind but decided to go for a sprint finish for the final 150m - finishing in a then-world record time of two minutes 1.01 seconds.

"It was as much a shock to me as it was to the rest of the world", she said.

Turning back to Hodgkinson, she added: "Keely was the main lady on the night and she delivered didn't she?

"There's no doubt about it that she never looked at all as if there was going to be a problem.

"She's a beautiful runner, and she's young and she is going to have a fantastic career."

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