Femke Bol’s inclusion as a finalist for World Athletics Athlete of the Year alongside Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone drew scrutiny from fans who expected Faith Kipyegon and Beatrice Chebet to be shortlisted. Bol’s season lacked consistent dominance, and her World Championships hurdles gold came with McLaughlin-Levrone competing in the 400m flat instead. Amidst this chaos, Fred Kerley has come forward to question Bol’s presence on the same finalist list as McLaughlin-Levrone.

Recently, Fred Kerley sat down with Anson Henry of Unconventional Productions, where the two discussed Femke Bol’s nomination as a finalist alongside Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone. With athletes like Faith Kipyegon, Beatrice Chebet, and Melissa Jefferson Wooden having standout seasons, Kerley voiced his dissatisfaction with Bol’s selection as the finalist.

“They’re trying to compare the two [Sydney and Femke], and you can’t really compare the two. There’s nothing against Fica [Femke Bol]. There’s nothing wrong with her, but she doesn’t deserve to be on that line this year!”

“It’s no such thing to be on that line when you really have not done anything, really. Sydney will break a record every time she steps on the 400-meter hurdle. That’s the standard in that event right there. So you just won a gold in an event that Sydney ain’t run. And if Sydney was around that, would you be into the thing?”

But Femke Bol’s 2025 season was successful in several key meets.

In the Rabat Diamonds League, the Dutch standout ran 52.46 seconds, setting a meet record. She came back on July 11, competing at the Monaco Diamond League, where she posted a world-leading 51.95 seconds. Plus, Bol won the London Diamond League at 52.10 seconds and ran a phenomenal 52.24 seconds at the Gyulai István Memorial in Budapest.

Yet, her performance lacks when compared to the other nominees.

Melissa Jefferson-Wooden won three World titles, becoming the only woman to achieve this “sprint triple” after Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce in the World Championships. Similarly, Beatrice Chebet not only clinched two gold medals at the World Athletics Championship (5000m and 10000m), but she also broke the 5000m World record.

On the other hand, Faith Kipyegon won the 1500m gold medal and a silver medal in the 5000m format just behind Chebet. In addition to that, she topped the fan vote.

Meanwhile, McLaughlin-Levrone competed in the 400m flat. She won gold but while clocking 47.78 seconds, the second-fastest time in history, and became the first woman in nearly 40 years to crack the 48-second barrier in the 400 meters. Levrone beat top athletes such as Marileidy Paulino and Salwa Eid Naser, breaking their championship record in the process.

All three had stronger résumés this year, yet Bol was selected over Chebet, Kipyegon, and Melissa Jefferson-Wooden as a finalist alongside Sydney.

Now, we will have to wait until November 30 for the announcement of the winner.

Amid all these, after securing the World title in the 400m hurdles, Femke Bol is now planning to take on a different beast altogether.

Femke Bol is looking to make a mark in the 800m

Speaking to a select group of reporters, the 400m hurdles world champion confirmed that she will shift her focus to the 800m next season and, for now, move away from hurdles.

“It’s a really nice challenge. I think it’s something that we’ve had in our minds for a long time,” noted Bol.

With her decision coming just after the World Championship, the observers have a question: will she be able to leave a mark in the 800m? Because Keely Hodgkinson and Lilian Odira are ruling the division right now. But as per Justin Gatlin and Dawn Harper-Nelson, it was a perfect decision from her to compete at the 800m.

“I think she’s really trying to create this legacy. This is like, ‘I’m not one, I’m not this one-dimensional. I’m not, you’re not going to put me in a box,” remarked Harper.

Harper-Nelson added that the Dutch standout has enough time to test her abilities in the 800m event as the LA Olympics are almost 3 years away. She indicated that Bol may spend the next three seasons refining her 800m performance.

Meanwhile, Justin Gatlin noted that she could eventually return to the 400m hurdles ahead of the 2027 World Championships.

“I was thinking that she’s trying to do 2026 and then jump back in, you know, for the 400 hurdles—maybe 2027, to protect her title.”

With the LA Olympics still far away, she has the flexibility to experiment without high-stakes pressure. But the longer she stays away from hurdles, the more the event resets around Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and other rising athletes.