Keely Hodgkinson has discovered that her body is not built like most people’s. The Olympic champion says an MRI scan has revealed she has a “split” hamstring, meaning she has two tendons instead of one.
The 24-year-old learned of the abnormality after a suspected tear last year prompted doctors to look deeper. She now faces the question of whether the unusual anatomy is a strength or a weakness.
“My body is quite literally built differently,” Hodgkinson said. “Where most people have one tendon, mine is split – I have two – and we’re trying to figure out if it’s a strength or a weakness.”
A tear that kept her running
The discovery came after Hodgkinson announced she had sustained another hamstring tear at the European Championships in Birmingham a few weeks before the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest. She finished second to Swiss runner Audrey Werro in the 800m final.
The injury did not stop her from racing. “When one of them tore, I still had another one because it’s split,” she said. “In Birmingham, it didn’t affect me during the race, but I could feel something wasn’t quite right.”
She can still run on the tendons. “It’s a weird one,” she added. “You can still run on them. I haven’t missed any training the last three weeks.”
But she has had to alter her approach. “I’ve had to take my foot off the speed [training], because that’s when it’s most risky,” she explained.
The road from Paris to London
Hodgkinson won Olympic gold in the 800m in Paris in 2024. That success was followed by a long layoff. She suffered a hamstring injury the following February and waited more than a year to race again.
Her return in August 2025 was impressive. She took back-to-back Diamond League wins and went on to set a new indoor 800m world record in February 2026. She then won gold at the World Indoor Championships a month later.
But the outdoor season has been harder. She has lost three races to Werro, including her European crown to the 22-year-old Swiss runner.
The canal fall that changed things
Hodgkinson has said she suffered a freak injury while jogging along a canal during a warm-down session. She sustained cuts to both knees and whiplash-like jarring in her back.
She acknowledged the fall could have contributed to her injury at the European Championships, which ruled her out of Diamond League meets in Zurich and Brussels. But she stressed she is not making excuses.
“Part of me wants to talk about it and then part of me doesn’t, because I feel like my words get twisted or people are like ‘oh, she’s making excuses’,” she said. “Going into the Europeans, I thought I was in the best shape ever. But when I fell over, that kind of messed me up way more than I thought it did. I think that’s what contributed to my hamstring, because I couldn’t really use my quad for a while.”
Still finishing second in the world
Despite the setbacks, Hodgkinson remains optimistic. She described 2026 as “frustrating” but pointed to her silver medal in Budapest as evidence of her resilience.
“Overall, I’m finishing second in the world and I can’t really be too hard on myself for that,” she said.
She will end her 2026 season in London at the all-female Athlos event, launched by Reddit founder Alexis Ohanian, on Friday.
The bigger picture
The hamstring abnormality means Hodgkinson can keep running even when one of her tendons tears. That is the upside. The downside is that the extra tendon may make her more susceptible to breakdowns.
Hodgkinson is still learning how to manage the anomaly. She has not missed training in the three weeks since the Birmingham injury, but she has adjusted her schedule to protect herself.
The irony is that the injury that kept her running also cost her Diamond League appearances. She could compete in Budapest despite the tear, but the fall that preceded it prevented her from taking part in Zurich and Brussels.
Key facts:
- Hodgkinson won Olympic gold in the 800m in Paris in 2024
- She went on to set a new indoor 800m world record in February 2026
- She won gold at the World Indoor Championships in March 2026
- She finished second to Audrey Werro at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest in September
- She will race at the all-female Athlos event in London on Friday
- Hodgkinson learned of her split hamstring after a suspected tear last year.
- She went on to set an indoor world record in February 2026.
- She lost her European crown to Werro.
- She fell while jogging along a canal during a warm-down session.
- She will end her season at the Athlos event in London.
The story is remarkable for Hodgkinson’s openness. She is not hiding the problem. She is describing it, trying to understand it, and moving forward with it.
That honesty deserves credit.
Source material: “'Built differently' – Hodgkinson reveals hamstring abnormality,” the BBC.
Get the Notebook.
The day's best stories and every fresh verdict, in plain English, in your inbox by seven. One email a day, no more.