With Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone out of hurdles at Worlds, Femke Bol enjoys switch to new event at Dutch Nationals despite runner-up finish

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone's rival, Femke Bol, shared her feelings after a second-place finish at the Dutch Championships in Hengelo. The Dutch athlete participated outside of her specialized 400m hurdles and enjoyed a switch in the 200m flat race during this event.

Bol won the heats after clocking 22.89 seconds to qualify for the finals, but faced a defeat against Lieke Klaver, even after registering a time of 22.84 seconds. Klaver won the Dutch title by the slimmest of margins (0.02 seconds) after clocking 22.82 seconds.

After bagging the silver medal in Hengelo, Bol shared a post on her Instagram handle, featuring a few glimpses from her time at the Dutch Nationals. She further expressed her happiness at clocking 22.8 seconds twice and competing in front of a home crowd. She wrote:

"🥈 and twice 22.8 yesterday on the 200m at nationals ✨ Always a lot of fun running at home♥️"

Being the 2023 World Champion in the 400m hurdles, Femke Bol is automatically qualified for the World Championships in Tokyo. However, she will not face her strongest opponent, McLaughlin-Levrone, who has shifted her focus to the 400m flat race for the Worlds and also qualified after a successful outing at the USATF Championships.

Femke Bol makes her feelings known on not getting to compete against Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the World Championships

Femke Bol (Image via: Getty)

Femke Bol spoke about not getting to compete against Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone at the World Championships in Tokyo. Bol and McLaughlin-Levrone have had several memorable face-offs in their time, including the 2024 Paris Olympics and 2022 Worlds, both of which were won by the American.

Speaking in an interview, Bol expressed her disappointment and added that she loved to compete against McLaughlin-Levrone. Additionally, she also heaped praises on the American athlete, stating that the latter was one of the finest to grace the 400m hurdles. Bol said, via NOS:

"Maybe it's a bit of a disappointment. It's a shame. As a track and field enthusiast, I think it's great that she's going to do the 400. But as an athlete, I'd love to run against her; it just hasn't happened very often. It's always unique to compete against her. I love it, even though there's a very good chance I'll finish second. She's the very best ever in the event I do, so it remains special."

Femke Bol has had an impressive season so far in the 400m hurdles event with victories in events like the London and Monaco Diamond League meets.