Audrey Werro narrowly holds off Femke Broeders-Bol in Brussels Diamond League 800 metre championships

Swiss 22-year-old 800 metre phenom, Audrey Werro, narrowly held off the hard-charging Dutch athlete Femke Broeders-Bol, who this year converted to the 800m, after years as a 400 metre hurdler. They finished first and second in 1:54.75 and 1:54.81, respectively.

Ethiopia’s Saida Tsehaye took third well back at 1:57.57.

The pacer took the athletes through 400m in just over 55 seconds, which is what the athletes asked for. Werro led from gun to tape, but it was over the final 60m, where Broeders-Bol looked as though she might catch Werro and nearly did. If the race was 810m long, Broeders-Bol may have won.

It was a meet record for Werro, who holds a personal best of 1:53.70 from the Zürich Diamond League meet. At that same meet, Broeders-Bol ran her 1:54.71 PB on August 27.

Werro is hoping to break the world record, which is held by former Czechoslovakian athlete Jarmila Kratochvílová with her 1:53.28 from July 1983. The only performances faster than Werro’s are Kratochvílová’s and Nadezhda Olizarenko’s run from July 1980. She is a Ukrainian runner.

There are only eight faster athletes than Broeders-Bol in history, totaling 14 performances that sit in front of her. It is only a matter of time before both are 1-2 in history. Also in consideration is 24-year-old British runner Keely Hodgkinson, who is the Paris Olympic champion and has run as fast as 1:54.33 in June this year at the Stockholm Diamond League meet.

Kenyan Pamela Jelimo held the meet record for 18 years at 1:55.16. She was an Olympic gold medallist from the 2008 Beijing Games and a silver medallist from the 2012 London Olympic Games.

She continues to hold the U20 world record for her 1:54.01 run in Zürich in 2008.

Will Femke Broeders-Bol beat Audrey Werro in the 800m this season or next season?