The Dutch athletics team will participate in the European Team Championships in Madrid from June 27 to 29 with a strong lineup. Among others, Femke Bol is expected to lead the Netherlands to success.
The 25-year-old Bol will not compete in her favorite event, the 400-meter hurdles, in the Spanish capital, but will run the 400 meters flat. In that distance, the Amersfoort native holds the world indoor record with 49.17 seconds.
European champion shot putter Jessica Schilder is also included in the Netherlands team, as are European indoor champions Lieke Klaver (400 meters), Menno Vloon (pole vault), and Samuel Chapple (800 meters).
The 26-year-old Klaver will compete in the 200 meters in Madrid. Furthermore, a spot has been reserved for, among others, Nadine Visser (100-meter hurdles), Niels Laros (5,000 meters), and Jorinde van Klinken (discus throw). Of all the top athletes, only Sifan Hassan, who is training in the United States, is missing.
In athletics, it’s usually about individual performances, but at the European Team Championships, team interest comes first. Points can be earned per event. There are a total of seventeen events.
The Dutch team competes in the first division with the sixteen best countries in Europe. The three countries that finish at the bottom after the three days will be relegated to the second division. At the previous European Team Championships in 2023, the athletics team finished sixth.