Femke Bol won her first global title on 24 August 2023, taking the 400m hurdles at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. She crossed the line in 51.70 seconds, clear of the field. The victory made her the first athlete from the Netherlands to win a world title in a hurdle event.
A wide lead built by halfway, then held to the line
Bol began to move ahead of the other seven runners about 200 metres into the race. From there she opened a gap and never gave it back, several metres in front at the finish.
Shamier Little of the United States took silver in a season's best of 52.80, with Jamaica's Rushell Clayton third in a personal best of 52.81. The final was run at the National Athletics Centre, before a stadium built for 35,000.
From relay fall to runaway win, days apart
The win came days after Bol fell metres from the line while chasing gold in the mixed 4x400m relay on the opening night. She was in tears then; here she led from the front. It was the second-fastest time of her career.
Bol had arrived as the world leader, having run 51.45 in London that July, a European record. With world-record holder Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone absent, the field was open, and Bol filled it, adding a world title to the Olympic bronze she took in 2021.
"I took the first few hurdles fast and then I could run my rhythm," Bol told reporters afterwards. "I think I have just had the best first 200 metres ever. Then I just needed to finish the race which I could do easily."
The title in Budapest confirmed her as the leading hurdler of her generation, a mark she would defend in Tokyo two years later.
