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Keely Hodgkinson fumes as she rips off medal in emotional live TV moment

Keely Hodgkinson was left gutted after finishing second in the 800m final at the European Championships in Birmingham, with the British star admitting she wanted to retain her title

[Keely Hodgkinson removed her medal after finishing second in the European Championship 800m final.]

Keely Hodgkinson removed her medal after finishing second in the European Championship 800m final.(Image: BBC)

Keely Hodgkinson struggled to hide her disappointment after securing second place in the 800m final at the European Championships in Birmingham.

The Olympic and current European Champion recorded an impressive time of 1:55:01, but was narrowly beaten by Swiss runner Audrey Werro in a tightly fought race. Werro rebounded from a dramatic fall in her semi-final to clock 1:54.81, setting a new Championship record and proving just too strong for her Team GB rival.

Femke Broeders-Bol rounded off the podium and shattered the Netherlands' national record, having only recently transitioned from 400m to 800m. Team GB golden girl Hodgkinson's frustration was evident in a post-race interview.

[Keely Hodgkinson finished second in the Women's 800 Metres Final.]

Keely Hodgkinson finished second in the Women's 800 Metres Final.(Image: (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images))

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She briefly removed her silver medal after failing to clinch the one she had set her sights on, reports Wales Online. Speaking after the race, Hodgkinson removed her medal and told the BBC: "I'm kidding, that was a joke.

"Yeah, a bit of mixed emotions. I think with that level of competition, any medal is a really good achievement. So another one to add to my collection. I can never be disappointed with that. But yeah, I'm defending champion, so I wanted to do that.

"I knew it was going to come down to the wire. I really thought I was going to win today, but I guess it just wasn't meant to be. I didn't do anything wrong. It's just one of those things."

Werro dominated the race from the get-go and when asked if that was the planned tactic, Hodgkinson responded: "I think there were so many different ways it could play out. It was all down to figuring out the first 100 metres. Audrey wanted to take it on. With that wind, I was happy to let her.

"But yeah, we're all really great athletes and I knew it was going to be close. I look forward to the next match-up."

Despite securing second place, the 24 year old expressed that competing against such high-calibre athletes brings out her top performances. She said: "I've said all year it's really motivating to be in such a competitive event. I love it. I think it brings out the best in me.

"Championship racing is what it's all about. You don't know how it's going to go. Some people can have a good day. Some people can have a bad day. I had a pretty good day today, I think. It just didn't go the way that I wanted it to."

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