Hodgkinson joins Werro for Zurich 800m Diamond League rematch

Keely Hodgkinson and Audrey Werro will renew their 800m rivalry at the 2026 Wanda Diamond League meeting in Zurich next week. The race will be their third meeting of the season, with Werro holding the advantage after victories in their previous two contests.

Hodgkinson, the reigning Olympic champion and current world number one, has been forced to chase the Swiss runner during a season in which Werro has produced the stronger results. The British athlete’s recent injury problems have also shaped her campaign.

Hodgkinson set a British record at the Stockholm Diamond League meeting in June, but Werro won that race and clocked 1:53.98. The mark made Werro the third-fastest woman ever over 800m at that point and also set a new series record.

Werro lowered that series record in Paris before defeating Hodgkinson again to win the European Championships title in Birmingham last week. Her run of results gives the home athlete the edge heading into the latest race at Weltklasse Zürich.

Werro also won the Diamond League 800m title in Zurich last season. She will return to the meeting as one of several Swiss athletes scheduled to compete on home ground, alongside Simon Ehammer, Ditaji Kambundji and Angelica Moser.

Zurich is the 14th meeting in the 2026 Diamond League calendar. The series began in Shanghai/Keqiao on May 16 and will conclude with its two-day final in Brussels on September 4 and 5, after events across four continents and 15 cities.