The Netherlands won a third successive women’s 4x400m title at the Birmingham 2026 European Athletics Championships on Sunday (16), with Femke Broeders-Bol making a successful return to one-lap racing after her bronze medal-winning heroics in the 800m.
In summary
- Dutch win third successive 4x400m title
- Newnham puts in brave challenge as British settle for silver
- Italy win bronze
The winning quartet were led off by reliable relay runner Myrte van der Schoot, who delivered the baton to 400m bronze medallist Lieke Klaver. She extended the Dutch lead on the second leg with a 49.5 split.
Great Britain and NI ate into the lead on the third leg, with Nicole Yeargin bearing down on Eveline Saalberg. But the Dutch still had a healthy advantage when Femke Broeders-Bol took the baton for the final leg.
Although she had not raced over a single lap in almost a year, it was difficult to imagine Broeders-Bol surrendering a last-lap lead. Great Britain and NI’s 400m hurdles silver medallist Emily Newnham tested the Dutch star when she drew alongside her around the final turn.
But Broeders-Bol called upon her racing experience, keeping the inside line and forcing the British athlete to go the long way round on her outside.
In the home straight, Broeders-Bol slipped into cruise mode and held off the plucky Newnham to take gold in 3:21.10, 0.58 clear of the British team.
Bronze went to Italy, who had national 800m record-holder Eloisa Coiro on the final leg. She had enough in hand to hold off the fast-finishing Blanca Hervás of Spain. The Italians finished in 3:23.57, 0.82 ahead of the Spanish.
For Broeders-Bol, it meant the eighth medal – including six golds – of her European Athletics Championships career. For Klaver, it was her sixth European medal, including two golds.
What they said...
Femke Broeders-Bol: "To win a third European title in a row, as a very small country, makes me very proud. I haven't done any sort of training on this speed, but on the other hand we all exactly know what to do to get things right and to win that gold medal. This was a great way to finish this week.
"We always love to win as a team, to train as a team and coming on the track together. It is amazing the men also got a bronze (4x400m relay) medal, so we are a happy country today."