Niels Laros finished tenth in the 1500 meters on Wednesday evening during the World Athletics Championships in Budapest. The 18-year-old athlete from Oosterhout crossed the finish line in 3:31.25. That time was an improvement on his national record (3.32.74) that he wrote in the books on Saturday at the World Cup.
Laros, just 18 years old, competed well throughout the race. He was always in the leading group. Until 100 meters before the finish he was on course for a medal. Then the strength flowed out of his body and he was overtaken by a number of opponents. “The plan was to compete. Show what I can do. Not be afraid of anyone. That went well in itself,” Laros looks back in front of the NOS camera.
By tightening his own national record, the Oosterhouter can look back with pride on the World Cup tournament. He had no expectations in advance and mainly wanted to learn and gain extra experience in Budapest. “I had signed in advance for a tenth place at the World Cup. When you are in the final, you want more, but it is what it is.”
Youngest participant
Laros surprised everyone at the global tournament in the Hungarian capital with his mature performances in the series and semi-finals of the 1500 meters. As the youngest participant in the distance, he brutally won his series and in the semi-finals en passant ran a Dutch record of 3.32.74.
The running talent from Brabant had initially not taken into account participation in the World Athletics Championships this season. In principle, his season was already successful with the titles in the 1500 and 5000 meters at the European Under-20 Championships in Jerusalem. But because he quite unexpectedly equaled Gert-Jan Liefers’ 22-year-old national record time (3:32.89) at a match in Nice and dipped below the limit for the World Cup, his season took on a new dimension.
The world title somewhat surprisingly went to the American Josh Kerr in 3.29.38. In the final sprint he defeated the Norwegian Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen, who had to settle for silver (3:29.65). The bronze medal was for the Norwegian Narve Gilje Nordas in 3:29.68.
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