METZ, France (Feb 8) – Double world 400 metres hurdles champion Femke Bol made a successful foray into longer distances on Sunday, claiming victory in her debut 800m race at the Meeting Metz Moselle Athlélor, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver event. By her own admission, Bol said she had jumped “into the deep” but “had a lot of fun” venturing into what had previously been the unknown.
The 25-year-old Dutch athlete clocked 1:59.07 to set a Dutch national record and finish as the fifth-fastest performer in the world this year, despite never having raced beyond 500 metres before. Shortly after embracing her rivals, she slumped to the track to deal with the predictable lactic acid in her legs.
“I really had a lot of fun,” Bol said after the race. “It was really…a jump into the deep. I had good training, but I don’t know what to expect in a real race. But it was a good experience and I enjoyed it a lot.”
Bol, who is also an Olympic bronze medalist and holds the world indoor record for 400m, ran the race with remarkable composure. Passing through 400m at around 57 seconds as requested by her pacemaker, she maintained her rhythm throughout to win comfortably, while taking almost a second off the previous 2:00.01 Dutch short-track record set by Ester Goossens in 2001.
Read Also: Femke Bol Runs Impressive 1:59.07, Sets Dutch Record on 800m Debut in Metz
The performance came after an intensive training block spent at altitude in Potchefstroom, South Africa, where Bol trained through November, December, and January, preparing for the distance challenge.
Noted for her relaxed running style throughout, Bol appeared to cruise even in the closing stages, where middle-distance specialists typically show signs of strain.
She defeated Swiss pair Valentina Rosamilia and Lore Hoffmann, who closed slightly in second and third with indoor personal best times of 1:59.90 and 1:59.91, respectively.
Britain’s Izzy Boffey currently holds the year’s fastest time of 1:57.43, set in Boston eight days ago. Bol owns the third-fastest time this season by a European runner behind Boffey and Swiss Audrey Werro (1:57.49) and the fifth-fastest on the World Athletics top list for 2026.
After stating earlier this year that her goal is “to run a really good 800m” this season, Bol is set to tackle a 600m race at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais on February 19.
