Two-time 400m hurdles World Champion will compete in the 400m dash and is also available for the mixed relay.
When a national team, like the Netherlands, boasts a talent of Femke Bol’s caliber, any report on their participation must feature her prominently. With a trophy room as extensive as this lean athlete from Amersfoort, it’s impossible for her achievements to go unnoticed. Her impressive collection includes four Olympic medals (one gold, one silver, two bronzes), eight World Championship medals (four gold, four silvers), and twelve European Championship medals (eleven golds, one bronze). That’s a staggering 22 medals across the six major indoor and outdoor competitions. Furthermore, she has won the Diamond League finals four times and triumphed in 27 meetings of the world’s premier athletic circuit. To top it off, she holds the European record in the 400m hurdles (50.95) and the world record in the indoor 400m (49.17). For Bol, racing a lap of the outdoor track without hurdles is a familiar task (she was European champion in Munich), a specialty she also chose two years ago in Poland (where she won) to represent the “Oranje” at the European Team Championships. As expected, her participation in the mixed relay is also highly anticipated, though official confirmation from the team’s technical direction is still pending.
Another key figure is her frequent partner in long relays (both women’s and mixed), Lieke Klaver. In Madrid, Klaver will not be competing in her usual 400m event. A two-time Olympic medalist, five-time World medalist, and nine-time European medalist (she’s the current indoor champion), she will instead focus on the 200m in Vallehermoso, a distance she conquered in the last edition of the championships with a time of 22.46. Like Femke and all other team sprinters competing in individual events, her participation in the mixed relay is also eagerly awaited.
When searching for stars, it’s easy to spot Nadine Visser in the 100m hurdles. She is the national record holder (12.36), placed fourth at the Paris Olympic Games, and is a two-time indoor European champion. Two years ago, she earned significant points for her team by finishing second. Also starring for the Netherlands is shot putter Jessica Schilder, the current European champion (both outdoor and indoor). Schilder also boasts three World Championship medals and knows what it means to throw the implement to 20.69 meters – a national record achieved this year in front of her home crowd at the Apeldoorn Omnisport.
While the men’s team may not have the same extensive accolades, we cannot conclude this article without mentioning Samuel Chapple, the national record holder for the indoor 800m (1:44.88). This impressive performance came when he clinched the European title on March 9th, shortly after finishing fourth at the World Championships. In middle distance, we highlight Stefan Nilessen, a European U23 champion two years ago. In Paris, at the last Diamond League before Madrid 2025, he joined the exclusive club of sub-3:30 1500m runners (3:29.23), a discipline he will defend in Vallehermoso. Such a superb performance is not a national record, as Niels Laros holds that with 3:29.54 (also an U20 European record). However, in Madrid, Laros will attempt a longer distance, competing in the 5000m (which he covered in 13:10.85 at the end of May, his personal best to date). This refers to a 20-year-old who earned an Olympic diploma and secured a third-place finish in the 1500m in his last European Team Championships appearance. Another legendary figure is Menno Vloon, the indoor European Champion with a Dutch record of 5.96m, who also won gold in Chorzów 2023.
The complete Netherlands squad is listed below:
100 m: Minke Bisschops and Elvis Afrifa 200 m: Lieke Klaver and Xavi Mo-Ajok 400 m: Femke Bol and Jonas Phijfers 800 m: Eveline Saalberg and Samuel Chapple 1500 m: Maureen Koster and Stefan Nilessen 5000 m: Diane van Es and Niels Laros 100 m / 110 m hurdles: Nadine Visser and Timme Koster 400 m hurdles: Cathelijn Peeters and Nick Smidt 3000 m steeplechase: Veerle Bakker and Nick Marsman High Jump: Britt Weerman and Jin van der Lee Pole Vault: Elise de Jong and Menno Vloon Long Jump: Pauline Hondema and Justin Sluijter Triple Jump: Kellynsia Leerdam and Fabian Biondina Shot Put: Jessica Schilder and Yannick Rolvink Discus Throw: Jorinde van Klinken and Ruben Rolvink Hammer Throw: Lotte Smink and Denzel Comenentia Javelin Throw: Dewi Lafontaine and Ryan Jansen 4 x 100 m men: Taymir Burnet, Nsikak Expo, Timo Spiering, Onyema Adigida 4 x 100 m women: Marije van Hunenstijn, Britt de Blaauw, Anne van de Wiel. 4 x 400 m mixed: Nina Franke, Myrte van der Schoot, Keenan Blake, Netanel Dorothea.
