Bianca Baak, Lieke Klaver, Lisanne de Witte and Femke Bol in Doha (© Getty Images)
To best describe the close friendship between training partners and occasional on track rivals Lieke Klaver and Femke Bol, perhaps the Dutch word of gunnen (not begrudge) might be most apt.
The Dutch duo have independently and collectively made quite an impact over the past 18 months or so. Last year Bol rocketed to No.1 on the world lists for the women’s 400m hurdles, posting a huge national record of 53.79, and earlier this year emphatically snared the European indoor 400m title.
Klaver, meanwhile, earlier this year set national indoor records for 200m and 400m (before Bol claimed the latter mark at the same meeting in Vienna) and the pair featured as one half of the Dutch sprint team which banked the European 4x400m crown with a national record time.
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12 cities want to host first WA Road Running C ships
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Twelve cities want to host the first World Athletics Road Running Championships
The start of the men s race at the World Athletics Half Marathon Championships Gdynia 2020 (© Getty Images)
Twelve cities from around the globe have expressed interest in hosting the inaugural World Athletics Road Running Championships in 2023, the World Athletics Council confirmed on Wednesday (17).
The strong international interest in hosting this new event, which will combine elite and mass races in a unique format, is a ringing endorsement of a festival concept designed to unite the international road running community.
The creation of the World Athletics Road Running Championships, incorporating the World Half Marathon Championships, was approved by the Council in December, and cities around the world were asked to indicate their interest in hosting the event.