The athletics world has been dominated by athletes from the United States in recent years across numerous events. Noah Lyles’ emphatic win at the Olympics last year, and Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone’s 400 metre hurdles World Record are just two of many performances to come to mind. However, Femke Bol could be the best European Athlete coming into the 2023 outdoor season, and could even challenge the supremacy of McLaughlin-Levrone. 

Bol is certainly not a new kid on the block anymore, but she has been in the shadow of McLaughlin-Levrone in previous seasons. The two went toe-to-toe at the Olympics last year, but the spotlights were on the American athlete following her World Record performance. What onlookers failed to see, however, was the fact that the Dutchwoman had broken the 51-second barrier for the first time. This shows that although McLaughlin-Levrone was in a class of her own on that day, Bol had fast times brewing on the largest stages. 

This season so far has only proved that Femke Bol has upped her game massively. As it is currently the indoor season, it is yet to be seen as to whether either athlete will primarily compete in the hurdles or flat 400 metre race this year, as hurdle races are very uncommon. However, the indoor season can give a great indication of where the raw speed of each athlete will be for the rest of the season. 

The Dutch and the American athletes both competed at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix earlier in February, but in very different events. McLaughlin-Levrone competed earlier in the day in the 60 metres, running a reasonably sharp 7.33 second clocking. This was not enough for her to make the final in this event. However, her acceleration is not her strong point as a 400 metre hurdler. This means that we should not read too much into this race, but rather see it as an indication that she wanted to see how she would fare in the shorter sprinting event. 

Bol, however, went above her usual distance, racing in the 500 metres. Blitzing the rest of the field, Bol ran an incredible 1:05.63 second World Record. Although McLaughlin-Levrone’s race should not be over-analysed, the rift in their performance was gaping. The fact that Bol went through the 400 metre mark in 51.32 seconds is also an indication that she is on-route to having some fantastic flat speed this season. 

This indication of the Dutch athlete’s speed came to fruition in Metz last week, as she broke the 50-second barrier indoors. Finishing with a mark of 49.96 seconds was incredibly impressive, and was the fastest indoor 400 metre performance since 2004. She then broke the Dutch record in the 200m, with a 22.97 second clocking. These races indicated that her speed is in a great place, and that she might be able to challenge the seemingly untouchable McLaughlin-Levrone this season in the 400 metre flat and hurdles races. 

However, it is important to remember that the American does not need to be in her best shape until far later in the season. Although Bol’s performances have been impressive, it is uncommon for a professional athlete to be running as regularly as she has been. Last season, Mclaughlin-Levrone did not run at all indoors, opening her season at the end of April at the Penn Relays in Philadelphia. 

This frequency of Bol’s competitions seems to be mirroring last season. She ran a total of 29 races last season, which was 19 more than her American counterpart. With the World Championships being held in Budapest in August, it is a long season for Bol to be running regularly in competition in February. However, if Bol can stay injury free, she will have a plethora of racing experience under her belt by the time the World Championships come around. 

Regardless of the debate over who is going to be faster this season, the women’s 400 metres will be an eye-catching event this year. These two athletes are at the top of their game, and with them being in their early 20s, it is a rivalry that it set to last.

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