Athletics-Werro outpaces Hodgkinson to win inaugural Ultimate Championship 800m title

Athletics - 2026 World Athletics Ultimate Championships - National Athletics Centre, Budapest, Hungary - September 12, 2026 Switzerland's Audrey Werro crosses the line to win the Women's 800m final REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel

BUDAPEST, Sept 12 (Reuters) - Switzerland's Audrey ⁠Werro capped a remarkable season by beating Britain's Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson to win the ⁠inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship women's 800 metres title on Saturday.

The 22-year-old Werro led from the ‌gun and crossed the line in one minute 55.88 seconds to add another major victory to a breakthrough season that has transformed the event, with Britain's Hodgkinson second in 1:56.26 and Dutchwoman Femke Broeders-Bol fading to third after sitting on Werro's right shoulder for ​700 metres.

Werro pocketed $150,000 for the victory, part of the event's $10 million ⁠prize pot that is the richest in the ⁠sport.

The women's 800m had been one of the most anticipated events of the championship, bringing together the three ⁠athletes ‌who have driven the distance to unprecedented levels this season.

Werro arrived in Budapest as the overwhelming favourite after a sensational campaign in which she posted 1:53.70, the third-fastest time in women's 800 metres ⁠and the quickest recorded in 43 years.

The Swiss runner had repeatedly ​beaten Hodgkinson throughout the season, won ‌the European title and emerged as the athlete most likely to challenge one of athletics' most ⁠enduring records.

Saturday's victory ​further strengthened that claim.

Hodgkinson, the Olympic champion and world indoor record holder, remained firmly in contention despite an outdoor season interrupted by injury, while Broeders-Bol's remarkable first year over 800m after switching from the 400m hurdles had added another dimension to ⁠a rivalry that has captivated the sport.

Their season-long battle has ​unfolded against the backdrop of one of the sport's most famous and controversial records.

The women's 800m world record of 1:53.28, set by Jarmila Kratochvilova in Munich in July 1983, remains the oldest mark on the athletics books. For more ⁠than four decades it has survived advances in training methods, sports science and technology, leading many to regard it as one of track and field's most formidable barriers.

The record has also been cloaked in controversy. Although Kratochvilova has consistently denied using performance-enhancing drugs, her achievement came during an era when athletes from Eastern Bloc nations ​were linked to state-backed doping programmes and anti-doping controls were far less ⁠rigorous than today.

This season has produced the strongest challenge to the record in a generation. With Werro, Hodgkinson and ​Broeders-Bol all posting times that would have dominated almost any previous ‌era, the women's 800m has enjoyed a renaissance.

And after another ​victory over her leading rivals, Werro capped her season as the woman carrying the event's greatest expectations -- leaving fans to wonder whether Kratochvilova's 43-year-old record can survive another season.

(Reporting by Lori Ewing)

Thank you for your report!

田径——2026年世界田径极限锦标赛——匈牙利布达佩斯国家田径中心——2026年9月12日 瑞士选手奥黛丽·韦罗冲过终点线，赢得女子800米决赛冠军 路透社/亚历山德拉·斯米格尔

布达佩斯，9 月 12 日（路透社）——瑞士选手奥黛丽·韦罗 (Audrey Werro) 在周六的首届世界田径终极锦标赛女子 800 米比赛中击败英国奥运冠军基利·霍奇金森 (Keely Hodgkinson)，赢得了冠军，为她非凡的赛季画上了圆满的句号。

22 岁的韦罗从发令枪响起就一路领先，最终以 1 分 55.88 秒的成绩冲过终点线，为她突破性的赛季再添一场重大胜利，彻底改变了这项赛事。英国选手霍奇金森以 1 分 56.26 秒的成绩获得第二名，荷兰选手费姆克·布罗德斯-博尔在前 700 米一直紧跟在韦罗的右肩后，最终获得第三名。

韦罗凭借这场胜利获得了 15 万美元的奖金，这是该赛事 1000 万美元奖金池的一部分，该奖金池是这项运动中最丰厚的。

女子 800 米比赛是本次锦标赛最受期待的赛事之一，汇聚了本赛季将该项目推向空前水平的三位运动员。

韦罗在布达佩斯以绝对热门的身份参赛，此前她以1分53秒70的成绩创造了女子800米第三快的成绩，也是43年来最快的成绩。

这位瑞士跑者在整个赛季中多次击败霍奇金森，赢得了欧洲冠军，并成为最有可能挑战田径史上最持久纪录之一的运动员。

周六的胜利进一步巩固了这一说法。

奥运冠军兼室内世界纪录保持者霍奇金森虽然室外赛季因伤病而中断，但仍然保持着强劲的竞争力；而布罗德斯-博尔从 400 米栏转战 800 米后，在第一个赛季就取得了令人瞩目的成绩，这为这项运动中一直备受关注的竞争增添了新的维度。

他们整个赛季的较量，都发生在体育史上最著名、最具争议的纪录之一的背景下。

1983年7月，雅尔米拉·克拉托赫维洛娃在慕尼黑创造了女子800米1分53秒28的世界纪录，至今仍是田径史上最古老的纪录。四十多年来，尽管训练方法、运动科学和技术不断进步，这一纪录依然屹立不倒，因此被许多人视为田径运动中最难以逾越的障碍之一。

这项纪录也充满了争议。尽管克拉托赫维洛娃一直否认使用兴奋剂，但她取得的成就正值东欧集团国家运动员与国家支持的兴奋剂计划联系在一起，且反兴奋剂检测远不如今天严格之时。

本赛季出现了近几十年来对纪录最强劲的挑战。韦罗、霍奇金森和布罗德斯-博尔都跑出了足以统治以往任何时代的成绩，女子800米项目迎来了复兴。

在再次战胜主要竞争对手之后，韦罗以该赛事最高期望值结束了本赛季——这让球迷们不禁想知道克拉托奇维洛娃保持了 43 年的纪录能否再延续一个赛季。

（Lori Ewing报道）

感谢您的报告！