Keely Hodgkinson is a six-time global medallist
Keely Hodgkinson says this year's London Diamond League could be a "battle of the world records" as she seeks to topple athletics' longest-standing mark on home soil.
The Olympic 800m champion will return to the London Stadium meet for the first time since her British-record run in the lead-up to her crowning moment at the Paris 2024 Games.
After an injury-disrupted 2025, the 24-year-old says she has not missed a single session during the best winter training block of her career – as evidenced when she smashed the world indoor record in February.
In the sport's first season for five years without a global outdoor championship to prioritise, Hodgkinson's attention has turned to the 43-year world 800m record time of one minute 53.28 seconds, set by Czech athlete Jarmila Kratochvilova in July 1983.
British team-mate Josh Kerr has already announced his intention to target the world mile record – which has stood since 1999 – in London on Saturday, 18 July.
"Obviously I would love to have that happen on home soil," said Hodgkinson, discussing where she would ideally set the record this summer.
"I get really excited about London and the crowd. As a British person, competing there is so much fun.
"It's definitely the main thing I'm looking forward to on the calendar this year.
"It might be a battle of the world records. Who can get a better one?" she joked.
Hodgkinson will begin her outdoor season at the Rome Diamond League on 4 June, where she will test her top speed over 400m, before beginning her pursuit of the world record with 800m races in Stockholm and Eugene.
If the world record does not fall in London, or indeed sooner, Hodgkinson will have the opportunity to race again on home soil at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham in August.
But, after suffering two significant hamstring tears during her first year as the reigning Olympic champion, she is not taking anything for granted.
"We obviously have a plan 'A' of what we would like to happen," Hodgkinson said.
"The sport has its own plans sometimes, and it is not something you can straight away plan and think 'lets do this'.
"If I come into the shape where I think I want to go [for the record] a bit sooner, or it happens to be a bit later in the season, that could just be how it goes."
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As she prepares to star in front of a crowd of 60,000 at London Stadium this summer, Hodgkinson reiterated her staunch desire to see the World Athletics Championships hosted there in 2029.
Last year the UK government confirmed its support for London's bid to host the event, with the intention of staging it at London stadium, which last hosted the event in 2017.
But those plans have reportedly hit a stumbling block over Championship football club West Ham's reluctance to agree to allow the venue to be used for about three weeks early in their 2029-30 season.
"I am really passionate about it. I didn't think we would get an opportunity in my career to get another global championships back in the UK," Hodgkinson said.
"That would be not only amazing for our sport but also the people watching, inspiring the next generation and putting our sport out there.
"We would sell out that stadium every single day, I believe that wholeheartedly. We have seen that before and there's no reason why it would happen again."
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