"This feels like a home race for me" - Femke Bol ahead of her debut at Allianz Memorial Van Damme, Brussels Diamond League 2023
The Netherlands' Femke Bol is all set to make her debut at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme in the 2023 Brussels Diamond League to be held at King Baudouin Stadium on September 8, 2023.
Bol will compete in the women's 400m hurdles event. She won the event's gold medal at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest last month, clocking an impressive 51.70 seconds.
In a press conference ahead of Memorial Van Damme, Bol shared how happy she was to make her debut at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme. Over the last two years at the event, she often found herself supporting her boyfriend, Belgian pole vaulter Ben Broeders, from the stands.
"I am really happy to be able to make my at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme," said Bol.
"The past two years I was sitting in the grandstands to support my boyfriend. This feels like a home race for me. I love Belgium. There will also be a lot of Dutch fans in the stands tomorrow, so I'm really looking forward to it."
Broeders will also feature in the competition in Brussels.
Bol also talked about favorable track and weather conditions while also addressing the physical challenges that come at the end of the season.
"I heard the track is super fast and the weather is amazing, so it's all looking good,” Bol said. "But at the end of the season your body gets more and more tired. On the other hand, the pressure will be lower than at the world championships," she added.
Femke Bol's performance in Budapest, her boyfriend, net worth, and more
Femke Bol clinched two world champion titles in Budapest, emerging victorious in both the women's 400m hurdles and 4x400m relay. Despite her dramatic fall in the 4x400 mixed relay, she made an astounding comeback in the women's 4x400m relay, overtaking the Jamaican and Great Britain athletes in the final meters of the race.
Femke Bol is presently in a relationship with Ben Broeders, who is a pole vaulter. The two athletes met in 2020 during the pandemic at the Diamond League events. Broeders won a gold medal in pole vault at the 2017 European U23 Championships.
Bol won the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. She also signed a sponsorship deal with footwear and apparel company, New Balance in 2017. At just 23 years old, she has reportedly amassed an impressive net worth of $5 million.