It was a shot put and hammer throw champion that came to the rescue of Belgium’s track team Saturday as its sprinters suffered injuries at the European Championships in Poland and could not compete in a race that would keep them in the top division of world competition.
With the team facing disqualification if they did not compete in the 100-meter hurdles, Jolien Boumkwo stepped up to volunteer for the heat.
As the starting gun went off, Boumkwo, 29, sprang out of the blocks and began to carefully step over each hurdle. She made it the 100 meters without knocking any of them down and finished the race in 32.81 seconds.
Teresa Errandonea of Spain won the race, finishing a bit faster than Boumkwo at 13.22 seconds.
“We sometimes do hurdles in training, so I know how to do it,” she said after the race. “I thought it was a special experience, because much more than with the shot put I had the feeling that everyone was looking at me.
“I try not to take myself too seriously as an athlete. The past has taught me that that will only make you cramp. If my two points ensure that we stay in the top division, this will certainly have been worth it.”
While she was cheered on by the crowd and earned two points for the team, Belgium finished 14th out of 16 teams at the event and was moved from Division 1 along with Turkey and Norway.
Watch Boumkwo take on the 100-meter race:
Every point *does* count at the European Team Championships!
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) June 24, 2023
Seventh in the shot put, Jolien Boumkwo 🇧🇪 steps in for the 100m hurdles at the very last minute in #Silesia2023! 👏 #EG2023
(@TeamBelgium, @The_EOC) pic.twitter.com/3rhERw9y5I
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