Sometimes it really is the taking part that counts.
Just ask Belgian shot put thrower Jolien Boumkwo, who competed in the 100-meter hurdles at the European Athletics Team Championships on Saturday after her teammates had to withdraw through injury.
After placing seventh in the shot put on Friday, Boumkwo turned her attention to the hurdles at the last minute and duly finished in a time of 32.81 seconds – 19 seconds behind the seventh-placed athlete.
Footage of Boumkwo carefully stepping over each hurdle while the other athletes race away ahead of her has since gone viral on social media. She smiled and laughed throughout before being congratulated by other competitors at the finish line.
Just having an athlete take part in the event earned Belgium two points and saved the team from disqualification, Boumkwo’s efforts weren’t enough to save her country from being relegated to the second division at the meet in Poland, finishing 14th out of 16 countries with 250 points.
