World 400m hurdles silver medalist Femke Bol ran a new world best and Dutch national record of 1:05.63 to win the women’s 500m at the 2023 New Balance Indoor Grand Prix here at the brand-new, state-of-the-art indoor track and field complex, the TRACK at new balance in Brighton, Mass., on Saturday(4).
Watch Femke Bol Sets 500m Record
Bol, who was making her season debut, and running the 500m race for the first time ever, broke away from Jamaica’s Janieve Russell with just over a lap left in the contest and then pulled away over the final 200m to take down the previous world best of 1:06.31, set by Russia’s Olesya Aleksandrovna Forsheva on Jan 07, 2006, in Yekaterinburg.
The European darling said after her victory that she was delighted with the season opener in what was also her first appearance indoors in the United States. Read more: How to watch the 2023 New Balance Indoor Grand Prix?
Leah Anderson improved the Jamaican record in the event when finishing second with a time of 1:08.34 after overtaking Russell, who had to settle for third in a time of 1:09.18. Russell had led the race through the opening half before Bol went by her.
Meanwhile, the men’s 400m went to USA’s Noah Williams after he snuck up on the inside of Jereem Richards to pip the Trinidad and Tobago sprinter on the line.
Williams got the win with a time of 45.88 secs, the same time as Richards, so the officials needed to use the photo finish to decide the winner. American Vernon Norwood was third in 45.92
