Belgium shot putter Jolien Boumkwo stepped up to run in the women’s 100m hurdles race in place of her injured teammates.
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During the European Athletics Team Championships 2023, the crowd at the Stadion Śląski in Chorzów, Poland, witnessed something extraordinary as a Belgium shot putter Jolien Boumkwo stepped up to run the women’s 100m hurdles race in place of her injured teammates. While winning was not her primary objective, she finished in the last position with a time of 32.81 seconds. The reason Boumkwo volunteered for the hurdles race was to prevent Belgium from losing crucial points in the overall standings.
Boumkwo finished significantly slower than the race winner, Spain’s Teresa Errandonea, who completed it in 13.22 seconds. On the other hand, the Czech Republic’s Tereza Elena Šínová (13.26 seconds) and Monika Zapalska (13.32 seconds) of Germany took the second and third positions respectively. Despite her substantial time difference from the podium finishers, Boumkwo received resounding applause from both the crowd and her fellow hurdlers at the finish line.
With three teams facing relegation at the conclusion of the 37 events, Belgium could not afford to let go of this opportunity. Consequently, the sight of a towering shot putter running alongside agile hurdlers was an uncommon spectacle. After her race, the 29-year-old Jolien Boumkwo expressed to reporters that her team was the most important to her and emphasized the importance of unity and team spirit. Unfortunately, despite Boumkwo’s courageous effort, Belgium ultimately finished 14th out of 16 teams in the competition, resulting in their relegation to Division 2.
At the European Athletics Team Championships 2023, Italy emerged as the overall team champions in Silesia, marking their first-ever victory in the competition’s history, including its predecessor, the European Cup. Contributing to Italy’s success were notable individual performances, such as Olympic high jump champion Gianmarco Tamberi, who achieved a height of 2.29m in his season opener. European indoor champion Samuele Ceccarelli matched his personal best to win the 100m in a time of 10.13 seconds.
Alessandro Sibilio further strengthened Italy’s position in the men’s 400m hurdles, clocking a remarkable time of 48.14 seconds, the fastest recorded since the event’s transition to the European Team Championships format in 2009. Additionally, Italian athlete Zane Weir won in shot put with a throw of 21.59m, while Sara Fantini secured victory in the women’s hammer event with an impressive distance of 73.26m.
Poland finished second in the first division overall with sensational performances from Ewa Swoboda who stood out with her outstanding victory in the women’s 100m with a timing of 11.09 seconds. Besides Ewa, Wojciech Nowicki won with a remarkable distance of 79.61m in the men’s hammer throw and Pia Skryszowska demonstrated her skill in the women’s 100m hurdles, winning with a time of 12.77 seconds.
Meanwhile, Germany also boasted a remarkable performance with a third-place finish. Kristin Pudenz, an Olympic silver medalist, dominated the women’s discus event with an impressive throw of 66.84m. Julian Weber, the reigning European champion, displayed his expertise in the men’s javelin and emerged as the clear winner with a throw of 86.26m.
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