Sawt Falasteen - Britain's Hodgkinson wins world indoor 800m gold

In a gun-to-tape performance, the 24-year-old world indoor record holder clocked a winning time of 1min 55.30sec in the four-lap race.

Her time was not only a championship record but also the second fastest time run over the distance indoors.

Switzerland's Audrey Werro took silver in a national record of 1:56.64, with American Addison Wiley claiming bronze (1:58.36).

Starting in the outside lane six, Hodgkinson covered the opening 200m in 27.24sec as she immediately moved to the front of the pack.

Tracked by Ethiopian Nigist Getachew, the Briton went through 400m at pace, in 56.96sec, the pack already split and struggling with her speed.

She refused to let up, building up a lead on her rivals through the bell for the final 200m lap.

Getachew was dropped but Werro fired down the back stretch in a desperate bid to make up some ground, but it was all too little too late as Hodgkinson sped through the line in elation.

Hodgkinson, who set a new indoor 800m world record of 1:54.87sec last month and said Thursday she would have been "quite happy" had the outdoor season already kicked off, announced her full return to global competition in some style after months on the sidelines in rehab for knee and hamstring injuries.

Untimely injuries have prevented the Briton from taking part in the past three editions of the world indoors.

But Hodgkinson, who earned Tokyo Olympic silver and Paris Olympic gold and who has two world outdoor silver medals and a bronze, touched down in Poland in perfect shape and more than demonstrated that.

Hodgkinson was immediately enveloped by training partner Georgia Hunter Bell, who had won the 1,500m just minutes before the 800m took place.

All eyes will now turn on Hodgkinson's plans for the outdoor season.

Given her new world indoor record, there is the mouth-watering possibility of her going after the oldest world record in athletics -- the 1min 53.28sec for the outdoor 800m set by Jarmila Kratochvilova of the then-Czechoslovakia in 1983.

R.Shaban--SF-PST