WHAT WILL IT TRANSLATE TO outdoors? When Femke Bol — an easy choice to repeat as Indoor Women’s Athlete Of The Year — wrapped up her World Championships weekend in Glasgow having pocketed two golds and improved the 400 WR for a third time since February of ’23, an encouraging golden echo was set resonating.
The WIC came off much as the ’23 European Indoor had, except with faster times by Bol throughout the three rounds of the 400. As at the ’23 continental clash in İstanbul, training mate Lieke Klaver captured 2nd in the two-lapper. Glasgow capped another superb indoor campaign for the group guided by Netherlands 400/long hurdles/relay coach Laurent Meuwly.
After her 400 trade up to gold from silver 2 years ago in Belgrade, Bol assessed, “Today the main goal was to win, but I knew I had to put up a great race. I had to do a fast opening, which is always a bit harder for me than it looks so I just gave it my all and I was so happy to win.
“And then I found out I also had the World Record again, and yeah, it’s amazing. I already had [the record], but to run it at the time when it counts with two races in the legs from yesterday, it’s happy and I’m proud of myself.”
Bol on those Glasgow golds: “This is great because I’ve not done hurdles for four weeks and it gives me confidence.”
Bol still had two rounds of the relay in front of her as she fielded questions, yet the queries to the 400H world titlist were already taking a turn toward racing over the sticks in the Paris Olympic year. Are the hurdles still her focus?
“Yes, still on the hurdles,” said Bol, the reigning World Champion in the event and ’23’s No. 1 World Ranker. “I’m really missing them and I’ll soon be back. I mean, I must say I like indoors a bit more than outdoors.”
Interesting. “But yeah, it’s just great to race,” she added. “It’s great to get some information from this. It will help me for the 400 hurdles. And I just enjoy racing and enjoying this race, the tournament [meet] and the atmosphere.”
That attitude is just one of many contrasts with Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone — until she’s dethroned the duly crowned queen of the lap hurdles.
Since Tokyo bronze medalist Bol captured silver in the wake of SML’s third World Record at the
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