LIEKE Klaver is one of the world’s most popular athletes on Instagram, and her account (@liekeklaver) has attracted over 750,000 followers.

In fact, the biggest challenge of Lieke’s running career so far hasn’t been injuries, false starts, or any of the usual things that convoy top athletes. Instead, she admits that it’s been “dealing with all the extra activities and the attention from social media.”

But the 25-year-old is far more than just a social media star. She has won seven major medals as part of the Dutch 4 x 100m relays, and she represented the Netherlands in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, where she helped the mixed 4 x 400m team finish in fourth place. Moreover, she is already planning for her career post-sports, stating that she “would really like to get a degree in engineering.”

Under the Spotlight

Last year was big for her. In March 2023, she won her first major individual medal in the 400m at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey. “It was very special to win a silver medal during the European Indoor Championships,” she says.

She also reduced her 400m personal best last year to 49.81, which situates her well for future championships.

Most recently, Klaver had a very successful weekend at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow 24, held March 2-3.

Competing alongside Dutch teammate Femke Bol, Klaver took silver in the 400m in Glasgow, then followed it up with gold in the 4x400m on the final day of the championships, matching the gold medal that they won outdoors at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 last year.

Klaver’s relay win in Glasgow was notable because she produced the fastest split of the race (50.26), despite competing on the first leg, which is usually slower than the other legs as it doesn’t benefit from a rolling start.

It marked Klaver’s seventh major championship relay medal. Along with her world 4x400m titles indoors and out, she also has three European 4x400m golds (two indoors, one outdoors), along with a world indoor silver in 2022 and an outdoor world mixed 4x400m later that year.

First Taste of Paradise

The World Athletics Relays Bahamas 24 competition from May 4-5 will be her first visit to The Bahamas, but she’s already seen other parts of the Caribbean, like the Dutch island Curacao. “I enjoy travelling to Curacao because that means it’s time for off-season and rest,” she said.

To relax, Klaver enjoys many of the same things that normal people do, like watching a Netflix series or drinking a frothy cappuccino. When she really wants to treat herself, she digs into a sugary and delicious national specialty, “bread with chocolate sprinkles. This is very Dutch,” she says, signalling her patriotism and the sunny nature of someone who doesn’t take herself too seriously.

She has also loved visit- ing other tropical places like Colombia, and it’s not surprising that she’s attracted by the sun – with a birthday on August 20 (Leo), Klaver has it as her ruling planet.

Soon it will be time for her to “Chase the Sun” in more ways than one and follow her athletic dreams from The Bahamas to Paris.

Klaver heads to the World Athletics Relays Bahamas 24 as a valuable member of the Dutch 4x400m team, the reigning world indoor and outdoor champions. The Bahamas is a key step on the road to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, where she hopes to earn the one category of medal that is missing from her collection.

“Becoming world champion with the girls has been the highlight of my career so far,” says Klaver. “My main goal in the Bahamas will be to win another medal.”

The Netherlands has strong medal chances in all three 4x400m relays in both The Bahamas and Paris.

In any case, it seems that Lieke is hitting her stride career-wise, and she is determined to make it to the Paris Olympics along with her Dutch comrades.

Above all, she has not allowed all the media attention to go to her head.

Lieke is a team player and maintains warm and supportive friendships with “the girls” on her relay team as well as her family. While sports don’t run in the genes for Klaver and none of her family members have achieved similar feats, she is proud to admit that “they are my biggest fans.”