Femke Bol from the Netherlands was in victorious form once again at the Gala dei Castelli in Bellinzona, a World Athletics Continental Tour Silver meeting, on Monday (4).
The world champion was pushed by Shamier Little from the United States who was neck-and-neck with Bol until the tenth barrier when Bol moved up a gear, pulling away off the final hurdle for victory in a meeting record of 52.79 ahead of Little (53.64) who was also under the Dutchwoman’s previous meeting record of 54.01 from 2021.
Bol remains unbeaten in both the 400m and 400m hurdles since the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon where Sydney McLaughlin shattered the world record with 50.68. Her next race will be the 400m hurdles in the Brussels Diamond League on Friday (7).
Fellow world discus champion Daniel Stahl took another victory over his predecessor Kristjan Ceh albeit by a narrow margin. Stahl took the lead in the second round with 67.24m which narrowly survived Ceh’s fourth round attempt of 67.15m.
However, world high jump champion Gianmarco Tamberi had to settle for fourth in the high jump with 2.24m, only missing out on the victory on countback. The top five jumpers all cleared 2.24m but Ukrainian veteran Andrii Protsenko was the only athlete who managed a clear card up until that height and took the victory outright.
Other significant performances included Brit Imani Lansiquot breaking the 11 second-barrier for the first time in the 100m in 10.99 to finish second behind multiple Olympic champion Elaine Thompson-Herah who is racing herself back into shape with 10.92 and two-time European U20 champion Audrey Werro finishing third in the 800m in 1:58.13.
In one of her final races in the junior ranks, Werro moves up to fourth on the European U20 all-time list behind Keely Hodgkinson (1:55.88) and East Germans Hildegard Ullrich (1:57.45) and Katrin Wuhn (1:57.86).
Full results here.