Audrey Werro reinstated as Keely Hodgkinson wins 800m semi

Audrey Werro has been reinstated into the women's 800m final following a dramatic fall during her semi-final race. Despite hitting the track with 120m remaining, the Swiss athlete finished in 2:35.35 to secure a reprieve. She will be joined in the final by Lithuania's Gabija Galvydyte, who was also caught in the incident and finished in 2:03.59. The decision expands the final field from eight runners to ten.

Werro was leading her heat when she went down, an incident that appeared to involve France's Anaïs Bourgoin making contact with Werro's foot during the jostling for position. Werro expressed relief at being given a second chance, noting that she finished the race specifically to maintain a possibility of qualifying.

In the second semi-final, Keely Hodgkinson controlled her race from the start to win in 1:57.38. She passed the 400m mark in 57.71 seconds and maintained her lead to finish ahead of Femke Broeders-Bol, who clocked 1:57.46, and Italy's Eloisa Coiro in 1:57.74. Hodgkinson noted the excitement surrounding the event and expressed hope for a clean race in the final.

The first semi-final saw Britain's Jemma Reekie take the win in 1:58.61. She was followed by Anaïs Bourgoin in 1:58.84 and Switzerland's Veronica Vancardo in 1:59.14, who secured the third automatic qualifying position.

Other qualifiers for the final include Valentina Rosamilia and Clara Liberman, who both recorded personal bests of 1:58.16 and 1:58.19 respectively. These two times secured the fastest-loser spots, completing the initial set of qualifiers before the two reinstatements were added to the lineup.