Femke MF Bol

Split on the 4 x 400 ?

reported as 48.7 . . .

Alomost on par with that Don Webster Penn relays run down back in the day. Great run!

Femke Bol ran a heroic leg. It looked like two Jamaican women died at the end of their legs. Do the sprinters here think that they could have gone 2 seconds faster with a more even pace or did it not matter?

Which report? The splits are missing from the report on the WA website.

She ran 49.19 in the semis pretty easily so I'd guess chasing and finishing like she did had to be well under 49.

Total Running Productions says 48.4.

On another note, why didn't Jamaica run Sherricka on anchor?

How many total races would've that been for the meet? At least 8

Yet our top American runners can't run 5 races -- the mixed final, the regular 4x4 finals, and the 3 heats for the individual races.

Sheesh.

Bol did the same thing last year in the mixed relay final, coming from even further back. Everybody kind of forgot about that because she barely missed gold.

Bol conceded after that race that she thought there was no chance. Tonight she understood anything can happen in front of her. Keep charging for the top spot.

This is that clip from Eugene:

She did it at Euros last year, took the stick in 3rd about 10 meters back and ran everyone down. She's just very tough down the stretch and one hell of an anchor.

Dutch relays are Bol and Klaver. It's the same pattern, leadoff runner is back in the middle of the field, Klaver brings them back to the front or close to it, 3rd runner stays just close enough to give Bol a chance. And it's the same pattern in the mixed, only replacing two mediocre 1st and 3rd female legs with 1st and 3rd mediocre male legs.

Here are the Netherlands 4X4 splits:
Saalberg 51.76
Klaver 48.76
Peeters 51.36
Bol 48.78

Klaver with that amazing leg too, understandably getting overlooked because of the manner of Bol's run, but they her to thank just as much as Bol.

If NED can get at least one other woman into a 50's next season, they can certainly challenge for Olympic medals.

I think they're right now, assuming everyone runs for the US, the #2 squad in the world.

Yeah Klaver also deserves huge credit. She blitzed that final stretch. As for the Olympics, surely the Netherlands is already a favorite to get silver or bronze. I mean, what 3 teams figure to beat their current squad?

Probably my favorite moment from the championship!

I love how much Bol loves to race!

Bol is probably the most loved figure in track & field right now. Her grace, humility and commitment to her team and teammates are wonderful traits. She doesn't look as powerful as her competitors and is deceptively fast. She looks like an underdog, but she's obviously anything but.

I love Bol so much it's unreal.

Ouch on the Saalberg split and double ouch on the Peeters split. 51.36 with a running start kinda sucks for a national team runner.