Olivia Borlée is a Belgian

Belgium

Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

 sprinter who specializes in the 200 metres

200 metres

A 200 metres race is a sprint running event. On an outdoor 400 m track, the race begins on the curve and ends on the home straight, so a combination of techniques are needed to successfully run the race. A slightly shorter race, called the stadion and run on a straight track, was the first...

. Her personal best time in the individual distance is 22.98 seconds, achieved in July 2006 in Brussels

Brussels

Brussels , officially the Brussels Region or Brussels-Capital Region , is the capital of Belgium and the de facto capital of the European Union...

. She has 11.39 seconds in the 100 metres

100 metres

The 100 metres, or 100-metre dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, it is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896...

.

She won a bronze medal in 4x100 m relay at the 2007 World Championships

2007 World Championships in Athletics

The 11th World Championships in Athletics, under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations , were held at Nagai Stadium in Osaka, Japan from 24 August to 2 September 2007...

, together with teammates Hanna Mariën

Hanna Mariën

Hanna Mariën is a Belgian sprinter who specializes in the 200 metres. Her personal best time on the individual distance is 22.68 seconds, achieved in July 2006 in Brussels. She has 11.41 seconds in the 100 metres....

, Élodie Ouédraogo

Élodie Ouédraogo

Élodie Ouédraogo is a Belgian sprinter of Burkinabé descent, who specializes in the 200 metres and 400 m hurdles...

 and Kim Gevaert

Kim Gevaert

Kim Gevaert is a former sprint athlete from Belgium.-Career:Her closest brush with a world title came in running 4/100 of a second behind three-time champion Gail Devers at the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics...

. With 42.75 seconds the team set a new Belgian record.

Borlée represented Belgium at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Belgium at the 2008 Summer Olympics

Belgium competed at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, People's Republic of China. 96 Belgians took part in Beijing, the biggest delegation for the country since 1976...

 in Beijing

Beijing

Beijing , also known as Peking , is the capital of the People's Republic of China and one of the most populous cities in the world, with a population of 19,612,368 as of 2010. The city is the country's political, cultural, and educational center, and home to the headquarters for most of China's...

. She competed at the 4x100 metres relay together with Gevaert, Mariën and Ouédraogo. In their first round heat they placed first in front of Great Britain

Great Britain

Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...

, Brazil

Brazil

Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...

 and Nigeria

Nigeria

Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...

. Their time of 42.92 seconds was the third time overall out of sixteen participating nations. With this result they qualified for the final in which they sprinted to a time of 42.54 seconds and the second place behind Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 but in front of Nigeria to take the silver medal, missing out on the gold medal with 0.23 seconds.

Olivia Borlée's twin brothers Jonathan and Kévin

Kevin Borlée

Kevin Borlée is a Belgian sprinter, who specializes in the 400 metres. He was a semi-finalist at both the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2009 World Championships, and is the current European Champion on this distance....

 are also athletes. Coached by their father, Jacques Borlée

Jacques Borlée

Jacques Borlée is a former Belgian athlete, and the father and coach of athletes Kevin, Jonathan and Olivia Borlée. He was voted European Athletics Coach of the Year in 2011.-Early life:...

, they ran together with Cédric Van Branteghem

Cédric Van Branteghem

Cédric Marie Carlos Thérèse Van Branteghem is a Belgian sprinter, who specializes in the 400 metres.-Achievements:-Personal bests:*100 metres - 10.54 s *200 metres - 20.60 s *400 metres - 45.02 s...

 and Arnaud Ghislain to the 5th place in the 2008 Olympic 4x400 metres relay final

Athletics at the 2008 Summer Olympics - Men's 4x400 metre relay

The Men's 4 x 400 metres relay event at the 2008 Summer Olympics took place on 22 and 23 August at the Beijing National Stadium.There were 16 NOCs competing at this event. These 16 NOCs were selected by the average of the two best marks at the qualifying period...

.

External links

• Borlée's website