Hull's 'side quest' gets new rival as hurdles world champ steps up

[ad_1] Australian center distance runner Jess Hull described her foray into the 800m on the Tokyo World Championships as a "enjoyable little aspect quest".

Two-time Olympic gold medallist Femke Bol merely calls it "the following problem".

Dutch 400m hurdles celebrity Bol introduced in a social media video that she would make the step as much as the 800m subsequent season, including one other dimension to one of many sport's most thrilling occasions.

"It is time for a brand new chapter," Bol stated within the video.

"It will be an additional lap. I am shifting to the 800m."

Bol is a two-time 400m hurdles world champion, defending her title in Tokyo final month.

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone (centre) and Femke Bol (proper) have each shifted away from the 400m hurdles. ( Getty Photos: BSR Company/Andy Astfalck )

She additionally gained bronze on the 2021 and 2024 Olympic Video games within the occasion.

In each finals, she completed behind American celebrity Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who gained consecutive gold medals.

The pair have dominated the ladies's 400m hurdles occasion, operating the 9 quickest instances within the historical past of the occasion between them.

Nonetheless, McLaughlin-Levrone has turned her consideration to the 400m flat. She gained world championship gold in Tokyo and threatened one in every of athletics longest-standing world information on the identical time.

"I've realized a lot from hurdling and actually beloved it, it's going to at all times have a particular place in my coronary heart," Bol stated.

"However I am prepared for the following problem, a brand new stimulus, a very totally different sort of race.

"It is totally different from what I am used to ... and I am actually excited to discover that."

Bol has gained every of the previous 5 Diamond League annual titles within the 400m hurdles, in addition to spectacularly anchoring the combined 4x400m relay to gold in Paris.

<h2 class="Typography_base__sj2RP Heading_heading__VGa5B future_heading__Gcudw Heading_default__Z3p_p Typography_sizeMobile20__NUDn4 Typography_sizeDesktop32__LR_G6 Typography_lineHeightMobile24__crkfh Typography_lineHeightDesktop40__BuoRf Typography_marginBottomMobileSmall__6wx7m Typography_marginBottomDesktopSmall__CboX4 Typography_bold__FqafP Typography_colourInherit__dfnUx Typography_normalise__u5o1s" data-component="Heading">Rivals rejoice at Bol's step up Keely Hodgkinson (left) and Georgia Hunter-Bell have been fast to reward Bol's determination. ( Getty Photos: NurPhoto/Pat Isaacs )

Olympic 800m champion Keely Hodgkinson wrote a reply to the video saying, "Cannot wait to share the startline" with two coronary heart emojis.

World championships silver medallist Georgia Bell has dropped all the way down to the 800m from the 1,500m the place she gained bronze in Tokyo.

She wrote, "So thrilling Femke! Some severe international finals pending".

New Zealand's Zoe Hobbs wrote, "Love this! So excited for you!" whereas Poland's Pia Skrzyszowska simply wrote "You craaaaazy".

"I've at all times beloved this quote, 'In case your goals do not scare you, they are not large enough'," Bol stated.

"And I feel that is undoubtedly the case right here."

Bol's determination probably places her on a collision course with quite a few rising Australian middle-distance runners.

Jess Hull is the Australian document holder and reached the world championship ultimate in each the 800m and 1,500m. ( Getty Photos: Patrick Smith )

Hull is the present Oceania document holder within the 800m with 1:57.15, a time she set by turning into the primary Australian lady to make the ultimate of each the 1,500m and the 800m on the identical world championships.

Nonetheless, she described the 800m as "an additional little bit of enjoyable" to assist her top-end velocity for the 1,500m, which stays her focus.

Australia had three runners alongside Hull line up within the 800m in Tokyo: Sarah Billings, Abbey Caldwell and former document holder Claudia Hollingsworth.

<h2 class="Typography_base__sj2RP Heading_heading__VGa5B future_heading__Gcudw Heading_default__Z3p_p Typography_sizeMobile20__NUDn4 Typography_sizeDesktop32__LR_G6 Typography_lineHeightMobile24__crkfh Typography_lineHeightDesktop40__BuoRf Typography_marginBottomMobileSmall__6wx7m Typography_marginBottomDesktopSmall__CboX4 Typography_bold__FqafP Typography_colourInherit__dfnUx Typography_normalise__u5o1s" data-component="Heading">No trendy historic precedent Jarmila Kratochvílová (quantity 411) gained the 400m/800m double on the 1983 world championships. ( Getty Photos: Allsport/Tony Duffy )

Though switching between the 1,500m and 800m is comparatively widespread all through historical past, there have been far fewer cases of athletes having success altering between one and two lap occasions, outdoors of relays.

Alberto Juantorena of Cuba is the one man to say the 400m/800m double on the identical Olympics, doing so in 1976.

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Jamaica's Arthur Wint claimed gold within the 400m and silver within the 800m at consecutive Video games in 1948 and 1952. South African Bevil Rudd gained the 400 and completed third within the 800m in 1920.

No lady has gained each occasions on the Olympics. The ladies's 400m was run for the primary time solely in 1964 and the 800m commonly appeared from 1960.

Nonetheless, Ann Packer gained silver within the 400m, behind Australia's Betty Cuthbert in 1964, whereas additionally profitable gold within the 800m.

Czech athlete Jarmila Kratochvílová, who gained each occasions within the 1983 World Championships, nonetheless holds the 800m world document set at that competitors.

Bol and McLaughlin-Levrone are usually not the one athletes to have made the profitable transition from the hurdles to the flat, with Australian Jana Pittman, British runner Sally Gunnell and American Edwin Moses amongst a number of to have carried out so.