German long jumper and sprinter Heike Drechsler and British medium-distance runner Britse Steve Cram were inducted last year along with Wilfried Meert, the founding father of the AG Memorial Van Damme.
This year four new favourites of the event are added to that list. Merlene Ottey is the ‘Queen of the Track’ and finished in the top three no less than twelve times during her glittering career. She won six times, including a phenomenal 200 metres in 1991. Hicham El Guerrouj triumphed eight times in Brussels and ran the fastest-ever 1500 metres in 2001, two years after running a world record on the 3000 metres.
With Kim Gevaert and Tia Hellebaut two icons of Belgian athletics get a well-deserved place in the Hall of Fame as well. Those nights in 2006 and 2008, when Belgium’s best sprinter and high jumper were cheered on by an exuberant crowd after brilliant performances at the European Championships and the Olympics, are unforgettable.
