Belgium’s women’s shot put champion Jolien Boumkwo-29 literally jumped over hurdles for Team Belgium at the European Team Championships in Lodz, Poland, last weekend.
Boumkwo volunteered to run the women’s 100-meter hurdles after two of her teammates were injured and Belgium faced automatic elimination from Division 1 스포츠토토, according to Reuters and other outlets on Friday. She wanted to earn at least some points. The bottom three nations in the 16-team Division 1 are relegated to Division 2. On Saturday, the day of the hurdles, 16th-ranked Belgium (159 points) was one point shy of the relegation battle with Turkiye (160), Norway (161) and Greece (171.15).
When the starting gun sounded, Buumcu carefully stepped over each hurdle. He crossed the finish line with no penalties. He finished the 100-meter hurdles in 32.81, 19 seconds behind the first-place finisher. He had placed seventh in his main event, the shot put, the day before.
For me, it’s all about the team. I couldn’t afford to lose by one point, so I considered competing in the 100 meters hurdles,” said Buumku.
“There’s no risk for me if I stay calm, maybe it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. I really enjoyed the race, I had some doubts, but now I can say I’m happy to have a new experience.”
Thanks to Boumku, Belgium earned two points. However, there was no dramatic turnaround.
Belgium finished 14th in the final standings and failed to avoid relegation to Division 2.
The 29-year-old has represented Belgium on the international stage since 2011, when he finished 13th in the shot put at the European Junior Championships. He finished 15th at the European Indoor Championships in Turku in 2023.
Her farthest throw in outdoor competition is 17.09 meters and her best indoor throw is 17.87 meters.