Quiet in the classroom, it was on the sports field that Hodgkinson quickly caught the eye, even managing to lap one of his classmates in a two-lap race at the age of 12.
His athletic career progressed steadily with the exception of 2015, when he underwent a mastoidectomy to remove a tumor behind his left ear, which has affected his hearing on that side. After a short rest, he ran again with renewed vigor.
Ian Gregory, head of PE at Fred Longworth, said: “I took her on a sports tour to Lake Garda in Italy one year. Rachel, her mum, pulled me aside at first and saying I had to make sure he did his workouts and stretches.
“I was 14 or 15 at the time. That’s when I first thought things were starting to get a bit serious.
“So on the sports tour, when all her teammates were up all night messing around and eating anything, Keely was still very focused. I got her up at the crack of dawn before breakfast, and she was doing her workout and stretching I would eat and drink well.
“She was getting up at least an hour before anyone else, putting on her gear and training. I joined a couple of times, but she was flying. I broke my hamstring trying to keep up with her.
This unwavering determination has always been present. Rachel recalls that her daughter refused to accept defeat at any task, no matter how trivial: “It would be little things like the hula hoop. She couldn’t do it and said, “I’ll do it at the end of the day.” And I would practice all day to do it.”
Galvin added: “A lot of athletes would think he was going through near-death experiences because he would put so much into his training. His work ethic was fantastic.”
After winning the European under-18 title under the guidance of Galvin and her husband Joe, Hodgkinson made the switch that propelled her to greater heights, joining her current coach Trevor Painter and his wife, former 800m world medalist Jenny Meadows. in 2019.
“It was hard to let go,” Galvin admitted. “But my husband wasn’t well, so we had to rethink. We would have liked to have continued, but I’m almost 72 and my husband is 79.”
Hodgkinson has remained close to his childhood coaches, visiting them and his former school teachers to give them insight into his Olympic medal last year.