Sifan Hassan voted European athlete of the year; Femke Bol named Rising Star
European Athletics selected Dutch Olympic gold medalist Sifan Hassan to Women's European Athlete of the year at the Golden Tracks award ceremony in Lausanne on Saturday evening.
Hassan won two gold and one bronze medal during the summer Tokyo Olympic Games. She took bronze in the 1,500-meter final and came in first in the 5,000-meter race and the 10,000-meter race.
The 28-year-old was the Dutch flag bearer during the closing ceremony at the Olympics.
"I hope that everyone is doing well. I want to thank European Athletics, my coach, management, family, and all my fans. I hope to see you all soon," Hassan said in a video message, according to NOS.
Hassan has also won the world title in the 10,000-meter race in Doha in 2019. In September she ran the fifth-fastest mile ever in the Memorial Van Damme meeting in Brussels.
At the European Athletics event, 21-year-old Femke Bol was voted Rising Star of the year for her performance in the 400-meter hurdles during the Olympics. Bol broke the European female record for the discipline with a time of 52.03 seconds and took home the bronze medal.
Bol is also a two time European Athletics Indoor Champion and won gold in the 400-meter hurdles in the Diamond league
Karsten Warholm from Norway also won the title of European athlete of the year for breaking the world record in the 400-meter hurdles in a time of 45.94 seconds.
