Olympic silver medallist Keely Hodgkinson will compete in the 800m and 4x400m relay for Great Britain at the World Athletics Indoor Championships.

 

The 19-year-old, who broke Kelly Holmes' British 800m record at last summer's Tokyo Olympics, was part of a 33-strong squad announced on Tuesday.

 

British 400m champion Jessie Knight and Ama Pipi join Hodgkinson in the relay squad.

 

The World Indoors take place in Belgrade, Serbia, from 18-20 March.

Great Britain's Elliot Giles chased down world leader Mariano Garcia in Madrid to claim a polished 800m victory in the build-up to the World Indoors.

 

Giles, 27, passed his Spanish rival off the final bend and stretched home to win in one minute 45.43 seconds at the World Indoor Tour meeting.

 

His seventh win in nine outings in 2022 puts him top of the Tour standings.

 

That opens up another spot for a British 800m runner to join Giles and Scotland's Guy Learmonth in Belgrade.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson will have the chance to defend her pentathlon title at the World Indoor Championships after being added to the British squad for the event in Belgrade.

 

The 29-year-old has not competed since withdrawing from the Olympic heptathlon with a leg injury last summer.

 

She has received an invite from World Athletics to compete in Belgrade

 

Fellow pentathlete Holly Mills and 800m runner Charlie Da'Vall Grice have also been added to the squad.

 

The World Indoors take place in Belgrade, Serbia, from 18-20 March.

South Africa's Stephen Mokoka broke the men's 50km record in his first race at the distance.

 

The 37-year-old won the Nedbank Runified 50km (31 miles) in Gqeberha in two hours 40 minutes 13 seconds, beating the time of 2:42:07 set by Ethiopia's Ketema Negasa last year.

 

Mokoka competed in the marathon at the 2012 and 2020 Olympics and 10,000m at the 2016 Olympics.

 

"I'm tired. It's a long way, but I enjoyed it," he said.

I'd imagine he'd be tired :lol: 37 is quite an age to be trying new events and breaking world records at them, well done to him.

A doping ban for Thando Dlodlo means that his South African team-mates Akani Simbine, Tlotliso Gift Leotlela and Clarence Munyai are set to lose the gold medals they won at the 2021 World Athletics Relays.

 

Dlodlo, who ran the first leg of the 4x100m final at the event in Poland last May, tested positive for testosterone at the South African championships in Pretoria a few weeks before the team's success in Chorzow.

 

The 23-year-old has been suspended for a two and a half years by the South Africa Doping Institute for Drug-Free Sport (Saids).

 

A spokesperson for Simbine, who finished fourth in the 100m at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, said he was devastated but that he would not be giving any further comment at this time.

 

It means Italy would be promoted to become men's 4x100m World Athletics Relays gold medallists, with Japan set to get silver medals and Denmark moving up to bronze.

Dina Asher-Smith says she is now a "stronger athlete" and will race in May's Birmingham Diamond League ahead of defending her world and European titles this summer.

 

The 26-year-old British 100m and 200m record holder's hopes of Olympic glory at Tokyo 2020 were scuppered by injury.

 

"That's behind me now and my focus is on the busy summer ahead," she said.

It's good she's getting back to her best - a strong performance in the Diamond League would be sure to boost her self-confidence!

Allyson Felix, the most decorated female track and field Olympian of all time, will retire at the end of the season.

 

The 36-year-old American has won 11 Olympic medals, including seven golds, as well as 13 world titles.

 

She competed at her fifth and final Olympics in Tokyo last summer.

 

"As a little girl they called chicken legs - never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined I'd have a career like this," said Felix.

 

"I have so much gratitude for this sport that has changed my life. I have given everything I have to running and for the first time I'm not sure if I have anything left to give.

All the best to her - didn't realise she'd been around so long! She's done so much in her career, I'm sure she'll find plenty to keep her occupied after she's retired.

Kenya enjoyed double success at the Boston Marathon on Monday as Evans Chebet held off two past champions to win the men's crown and reigning Olympic champion Peres Jepchirchir captured the women's title.

 

Chebet won in two hours six minutes 51 seconds to top the first all-Kenyan podium since 2012, beating 2019 Boston winner Lawrence Cherono by 30 seconds with defending champion Benson Kipruto third in 2:07:27.

Interesting - I've just googled 'Boston Marathon' and none of the top news stories mention the winners! I do get articles about the first runner from the We’koqma’q First Nation to compete in the race and a therapy dog being named the official dog of the race which are both interesting though.

Dina Asher-Smith says American legend Allyson Felix has been an inspiration as they prepare for Thursday's 200m Diamond League race in Rome.

 

Felix, who has won 20 major championship gold medals, will retire at the end of this season, aged 36.

 

Felix also forced a change in sportswear giant Nike's policy, ensuring female athletes would not lose out on pay if they become pregnant.

 

"She's an absolute legend, an icon of grace and dignity," said Asher-Smith.

 

"She has done so much for us, so much for our sport. I can now have the feasible option to go and have a child and come back without the stress over whether my career would be the same when I do.

 

"A lot of us have her to thank for that."

I don't think I ever knew about the Nike pregnancy campaign! It's certainly good she was able to use her influence to make that happen.

Dina Asher-Smith finished third in the 200m at the Rome Diamond League as Jamaica's Shericka Jackson won ahead of Elaine Thompson-Herah.

 

Jackson won in a season's-best 21.91 seconds, with Olympic champion Thompson-Herah finishing in 22.25.

 

Asher-Smith, who will defend her world title in the United States next month, was close behind in 22.27 - her best time this season.

 

American Allyson Felix, in her final season before retirement, was seventh.

 

Bahamian Shaunae Miller-Uibo was fourth in a field stacked with Olympic champions, with Britain's Beth Dobbin ninth in 23.36 at the Stadio Olimpico.

Didn't know that Laura Muir had picked up an injury recently, hence her below par form. Is 5 weeks enough to shave the 8 to 9 seconds needed to get on the podium in Eugene?

Poland's Anita Wlodarczyk says she will have surgery on an injury sustained while apprehending a thief who broke into her car.

 

Wlodarczyk, 36, won gold in the hammer in Tokyo last year to capture a third Olympic track and field title in the same event.

That must have been a stressful experience for her! Thankful that she didn't suffer anything more than a muscle injury.

American Devon Allen produced the third quickest 110m hurdles time in history at the New York Grand Prix on Sunday.

 

Allen won in 12.84 seconds, a time bettered only by Aries Merritt (12.80) and world champion Grant Holloway (12.81), who placed second in 13.06.

 

Allen, 27, is to pursue an NFL career after earning a contract with the Philadelphia Eagles in April.

 

"I thought I was going to break the world record today so we'll have to wait for another race," he said.

 

A two-time Olympian, Allen hopes to compete at next month's World Championships in Eugene, Oregon, before linking up with the Eagles.

Keely Hodgkinson led a British one-two in the women's 800m in the Diamond League meeting in Oslo, Norway.

 

Olympic silver medallist Hodgkinson continued her unbeaten streak in 2022 with a season's best of 1:57.71, crossing the line ahead of Laura Muir.

 

"I was fairly happy but I wanted faster. A win is a win though," she told the British Athletics website.

 

"It was great to have that race with Laura and she's running well."

 

The 20-year-old Hodgkinson added: "I'm trying to take it week by week, but I love championship racing and running the rounds, so I'm looking forward to Eugene."

 

Briton Reece Prescod was beaten by 0.01 seconds as Olympic bronze medallist Andre de Grasse won the men's 100m.

 

Sweden's world record holder Armand Duplantis cleared 6.02m for the highest pole vault of 2022.

 

The 22-year-old Duplantis battled through slippery conditions to jump 22cm higher than Norwegian pair Sondre Guttormsen and Pal Haugen Lillefosse, who both crashed out at 5.86m.