Tara Davis-Woodhall, Anna Hall and others react to Femke Bol’s major life update

Dutch track and field athlete Femke Bol recently announced her engagement to Belgian pole vaulter Ben Broeders. Following this major life update, Bol received warm reactions from several athletes, including Tara Davis-Woodhall and Anna Hall among others.

Bol was last seen in action at the recently concluded European Athletics Team Championships, where she dominated the 400m and secured her third consecutive title at the event, clocking 49.48s. Bol, who was coming off a third-place finish in her first 400m at the Golden Spike Meet in Ostrava, clocked a season-best at the European Team Championships.

Shortly after achieving this major feat, Bol shared another big update on Instagram. On July 2, she announced her engagement to Broeders with a selfie of the two, where Bol is seen showing off her engagement ring. In the caption, Femke Bol wrote:

“My person for life, to forever with you ♥️💍✨”

The post elicited reactions from athletes such as Tara Davis-Woodhall, Anna Hall and others.

The American track and field athlete and reigning long jump champion Tara Davis-Woodhall commented:

"Congratulations!!! ❤️🥹"

Heptathlon star Anna Hall added:

"congrats!! ❤️❤️"

Alexis Ohanian’s Athlos wrote:

"Congratulations Femke! 🥹✨"

Greek pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis added:

"🫣😭❤️"

British hurdler, Lina Nielsen, commented:

"🥹🥹🥹 congratulations Femke & Ben!! ❤️❤️❤️"

Screenshot of comments (IG/femke_bol and benbroeders).

Femke Bol and Broeders have been seeing each other since 2021 and also bought a home together in the Netherlands last year.

---

Femke Bol opens up about her love and motivation for athletics

2025 Diamond League - BAUHAUS-galan - Source: Getty

Femke Bol had an impressive 2024 season. She won three Olympic medals at the Paris Games. In addition to that, she also secured her fourth Diamond League title the same year. Bol holds the European record in both the 400m hurdles and the indoor 400m.

In an interview with Robbert Rodenburg in 2025, she reflected on her dedication to the sport:

“I just love what I do. I really like athletics. I love trying to improve myself every day. And that’s the beauty of athletics—you can actually see your progress on the clock at the end of the day. Sure, you feel it in training, but you still have to prove it,” she said. (5:30 onwards)

“Yes, I’m quite the perfectionist, and there’s always room for improvement—especially in the 400m hurdles. Those hurdles never go perfectly. But that’s exactly what I enjoy—the process of getting better. You think it can’t get any better, then you work hard and somehow improve. That’s really the most beautiful thing there is,” she added.

Femke Bol was also named European Athlete of the Year in 2022 and 2023. Bol is expected to be back on track at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo.