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Olympic gold winning Keely Hodgkinson has revealed she is 'devastated' after sustaining an injury which rules her out of her own event this weekend.
The 'Keely Klassic' is due to take place on Saturday, with the track star aiming to break the women's 800m world indoor record.
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That record is currently held by Jolanda Ceplak, who set the time on Hodgkinson's birthday in 2002 with a time of one minute 55.82 seconds.
Posting on Instagram, she wrote: "I am so gutted and disappointed to be announcing this, unfortunately after a great week of preparations for this weekend, yesterday I picked up a hamstring injury, which means I'll have to sit this one out this weekend and not compete."
"I'm devastated to be missing the launch of the first @keelyklassic, me and my team worked so hard these last couple of months to put me in a perfect position to race, and I was so excited to perform in front of a home crowd!
"BUT… this event was never just about me. From the start, it was about bringing fresh energy to our sport, celebrating British talent, and connecting with the next generation of fans.
"And we look forward to still bringing that to life. I will still be there on Saturday and Still super excited to be supporting my teammates, seeing the crowd and watching an incredible day of athletics.
"I look forward to seeing some of you there and I hope you all enjoy it too" she wrote.
Hodgkinson confirmed she will still attend the event at the Utilita Arena in Birmingham.
Her hamstring injury comes at a bad time too, with the World Indoor Athletics Championships getting underway in March.
However, despite not confirming a recovery timeline, the gold medal winner will most likely be targetting those indoor championships.
Hodgkinson won Olympic gold in Paris this summer to make it Team GB's only gold in track and field.
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She clocked a time of 1:56.72 to beat Ethiopia's Tsige Duguma and Kenya's reigning world champion Mary Moraa for the top spot.
Hodgkinson built on a glittering 2024 by adding the BBC Sports Personality of the Year award in December.
She also picked up the Sunday Times Sportswoman of the Year award in January.
The 22-year-old middle distance runner had missed the rest of the 2024 season with an injury, and it is hoped that her latest blow will not keep her on the sidelines for too long.
