Great Britain Celebrates Day of Golds, Records and Near Misses

Great Britain enjoyed a stellar day at the Paris 2024 Olympics, highlighted by Keely Hodgkinson’s commanding victory in the women’s 800m final. Hodgkinson, the 22-year-old star, lived up to expectations and secured Britain’s first track gold since Mo Farah’s double win in Rio 2016. Her emotional performance was a significant milestone as she had previously earned silver at the Tokyo Games and at consecutive World Championships.

This win also marked a return to gold for British athletics with Hodgkinson following in the footsteps of Kelly Holmes, who last achieved this feat in Athens 20 years ago. Earlier, Team GB’s women’s team sprint trio, consisting of Katy Marchant, Sophie Capewell and Emma Finucane set a new world record, achieving their first Olympic gold in the event.

They delivered a remarkable performance, breaking the world and Olympic records twice during the competition. This gold was a breakthrough for Great Britain, who had not qualified for the women’s team sprint since 2012. In other events, Joe Clarke won silver in the kayak cross and Kimberley Woods earned bronze in the same event, making her the first British woman to win two Olympic medals in canoeing.

Meanwhile, Simone Biles concluded her “redemption tour” with medals in gymnastics, though she missed out on gold in both the balance beam and floor finals, finishing fifth and second respectively. The mixed relay triathlon saw GB narrowly miss out on silver, finishing third after a thrilling photo finish. Alex Yee and Beth Potter had earlier secured gold and bronze in the individual triathlons.

This series of performances underscored a day of both triumph and near misses for Great Britain at the Games.