Femke Bol
As the World Athletics Awards 2023 draws near, we’re shining a spotlight on the 10 finalists – five men and five women – for the World Athlete of the Year awards.
Today the focus is on Dutch 400m hurdler Femke Bol.
When Femke Bol started her 2023 by breaking a world indoor best, it was clear she was poised for a great year.
One week after her record-breaking 1:05.63 clocking over 500m in Boston, Bol made more history by setting Dutch indoor 200m and 400m records on the same day, clocking 22.87 and 49.96.
There was more to come, though. Eight days later, she broke the world indoor 400m record with a stunning 49.26 run at the Dutch Indoor Championships, taking 0.33 off a record that had stood for 41 years.
She ended her indoor campaign by taking double gold at the European Indoor Championships, winning the 400m (49.85) and 4x400m (3:25.66).
At the end of May, she opened what became an undefeated run of victories in her specialist event, the 400m hurdles.
She started her outdoor season with 400m hurdles wins in Oordegem (53.12), Florence (52.43), Oslo (52.30) and Lausanne (52.76). At the end of July, in what was her final appearance before the World Championships, she blew the opposition away to win at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in London in a world-leading European record of 51.45.
It was the third-fastest performance in history; up until June 2022, it would have been a world record.
Bol didn’t race again until the World Championships, but her Budapest experience didn’t get off to the best of starts.
Running the anchor leg for the Netherlands in the mixed 4x400m on the opening day of the championships, Bol fell in the closing stages while leading the race.
She didn’t wallow in the disappointment for too long, though, because she knew she had two other opportunities to win gold medals.
Two days after that fall, she breezed through her 400m hurdles heat, and then won her semifinal. She was unbeatable in the final, winning by more than a second in 51.70 to secure her first global title.
She didn’t have long to wait before she won another. On the final day of the championships, Bol’s week came full circle as she ran the anchor leg for the Netherlands in the women’s 4x400m, coming from behind to take gold in the final stages, winning in a world-leading national record of 3:20.72.
She rounded out her season with wins in Bellinzona (52.79) and Brussels (52.11) before winning the Wanda Diamond League title in 51.98, the third sub-52-second clocking of her season.
Bol ended her 2023 season with the eight fastest 400m hurdles performances in the world this year. She also now owns 12 of the 13 fastest times in history by a European woman.
• The World Athletes of the Year will be announced on World Athletics’ social media platforms on 11 December as part of the World Athletics Awards 2023 – and you and a friend can be part of the celebrations.
One lucky person and a companion will win a once-in-a-lifetime VIP trip to Monaco during the annual World Athletics Awards.
The winners of the fan VIP trip will get to spend three nights (9-11 December) in Monaco and meet the best athletes of 2023 in person. Flights, accommodation and evening meals will all be included.
