Georgia Hunter Bell Reveals When She Realised Lilian Odira Was a 'Dangerous' Rival

Georgia Hunter Bell has explained the type of athlete Lilian Odira is, following the women’s 800m final at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan.

Lilian Odira stamped her authority with a dominant win, clocking 1:54.62, a personal best time which saw her shatter the 42-year-old record of 1:54.68 set by Czech legend Jarmila Kratochvilova in 1983.

Georgia Hunter Bell and Olympic 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson finished second and third in that race. They clocked respective times of 1:54.90 and 1:54.91.

Georgia Hunter Bell, reflecting on the tight women’s 800m final, has disclosed when Lilian Odira caught her attention and why, going into the race, she knew the Kenyan would be a headache.

Georgia Hunter Bell pointed out that she first noticed Lilian Odira at the Diamond League Meeting in Silesia, where she finished second behind Keely Hodgkinson, clocking 1:56.52.

Going into the World Athletics Championships, Georgia Hunter Bell admitted that she was amazed by Lilian Odira’s impressive form in the heats and semifinal, where she clocked 1:57.86 and 1:56.85, respectively.

“I saw that she came second in Keely’s comeback race, but Keely beat her by loads. So that's when I started to be like, ‘Oh, she’s a 1:56 runner,' and then I thought in the rounds she looked really dangerous,” Georgia Hunter Bell told reporters after the women’s 800m final.

“Like she did a I think a 157 and 156 and looked very smooth doing it. So I was really thinking today that, like, she would be a big threat to come through.”

During the race, Georgia Hunter Bell revealed that she was confident about winning the gold medal, and it was not until the closing stages that she realised Lilian Odira would be the one to walk away with the coveted prize.

Georgia Hunter Bell pointed out that her coach, Trevor Painter, had warned her about a certain mistake which she unfortunately committed, and it cost her the gold medal.

“Yeah, I got a bit boxed on the inside coming in, and Trev said, ‘Don't go on the inside rail. Don't go on the rail.’ And it's just hard when you're coming around the bend and you see a gap, and your other option is to go wide. So, I did think for a moment I was going to win it, but yeah, I felt really good in the race, so I'm really happy,” Georgia Hunter Bell added.

Despite narrowly missing out on gold, Georgia Hunter Bell admitted that Lilian Odira’s dominance was well-deserved, praising the Kenyan’s composure and strength as a true champion.