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Laros breaks world U20 1000m record in Hengelo

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Double European U20 champion Niels Laros provided one of the many great moments for the Dutch fans at a sold-out edition of the FBK Games in Hengelo, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, on Sunday (7) evening.

Laros stormed to a clear-cut victory in the 1000m - the first time the 19-year-old has ever contested the event - and the teenager broke the world U20 record with his winning time of 2:14.37, improving the previous mark of 2:15.00 which had stood since 1999.

His winning time was also an outright Dutch record and puts him at sixth on the European all-time list which is headed by Sebastian Coe’s enduring European record of 2:12.18.

“I didn't really have any expectations for today, because it is my first real race of the season. My training went well so I came here for the win. It is great to not only win but also to run the world U20 record,” said Laros, who competed at the European Athletics Championships but exited in the heats of the 800m. 

Laros will turn his focus back to the 1500m for the rest of the summer and he will make his season’s debut at his specialist event next Friday.  

“It is difficult to say what this race tells about my form in the 1500m. I will run a 1500m in Monaco, but the most important thing is to continue training towards the Olympic Games. To be able to say what is possible in Paris is difficult. I live lap by lap and the level in Paris is very high so it will be great to come through the heats and semifinal,” said Laros. 

Laros has one summer left before graduating out of the U20 ranks and the teenager could have half-an-eye on bettering the European U20 record held by Jakob Ingebrigtsen at 3:30.16. The Dutchman is currently second on the European U20 all-time list with his 3:31.25 clocking from the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest where he reached the final. 

Dutch record of 20.33m for Schilder in the shot put 

Two-time European shot put champion defied the deteriorating conditions to uncork a national record of 20.33m in the sixth round of the shot put to take the significant scalps of world champion Chase Jackson (20.07m) and Olympic champion Gong Lijiao (20.00m).

Schilder was lying in third place behind the two reigning global shot put champions before the last round when she produced the winning throw which equated to a two centimetre improvement on her previous national record.

"The sixth throw, I really wanted to make something special out of it. I didn't really work to keep my nerves under control which was also due to the rain. The national record says that my form is great, but also I know that I have to make some improvements regarding my technique. We will see what is possible in Paris. I just want to enjoy today,” said Schilder.

Two-time European indoor champion Nadine Visser also improved her national record in a hotly contested 100m hurdles final, finishing second in 12.46 behind Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn who improved her meeting record to 12.39. 

And her first 400m flat since breaking the world indoor record at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Femke Bol took victory in worsening conditions in 50.02 by over one second from Chile’s Martina Weil in 51.05.




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