Exciting rematch as Moraa faces Hodgkinson in Turin

Commonwealth Games 800m champion Mary Moraa makes her debut in indoor running when she takes to the track for the women’s 800m at the ORLEN Copernicus Cup in Toruń on Wednesday 8 February.

Her has been made ever so special by the hype surrounding the race as the world championships bronze medalist takes on rival, Olympics silver medalist Keely Hodgkinson.

Seven months ago, in Birmingham Moraa beat Hodgkinson for the first time in a major championship and the pair meet for a much-anticipated rematch at the World Indoor Tour Gold event on Wednesday.

At the Commonwealth Games, Moraa flew through the first 200m in 25.9 and continued to lead approaching the bell in 56.5 but then allowed the entire field to swallow her up as she went from first to last place on the penultimate bend.

On the back straight, she moved back up to fourth place and then powered down the last 50m or so to win in 1:57.07 as Hodgkinson took silver in 1:57.40 with Laura Muir edging out Natoya Goule for bronze.

Hodgkinson is in great form going into this week’s showdown as she set a 600m world best of 1:23.41 in Manchester last week.

Kenya’s Mary Moraa, Ferdinand Omanyala and Collins Kipruto in Wednesday’s Indoor Meeting action

Moraa, however, also beat Hodgkinson in the Diamond League final last year and has yet to race in 2023. It is also maybe not quite a two-horse race either. Diribe Welteji of Ethiopia was fourth in the world 800m final in Eugene last July behind Athing Mu, Hodgkinson and Moraa.

Also, in the Toruń line-up is 2019 world champion Halimah Nakaayi of Uganda, world leader Noelie Yarigo of Benin and Slovenia’s Anita Horvat, who won the 800m in Karlsruhe recently.

Meanwhile, the women’s mile will feature a world record attempt with Gudaf Tsegay of Ethiopia attacking Genzebe Dibaba’s mark of 4:13.31 set in 2016. Tsegay set a world indoor 1500m record of 3:53.09 in Lievin two years ago and she has since won the world 5000m title.

Elsewhere in Toruń, world indoor 3000m champion Lemlem Hailu is joined by fellow Ethiopians Ejgayehu Taye, Werkwuha Getachew and Freweyni Hailu.

Additional reporting by Athletics weekly.