Peter Bol

Nagmeldin "Peter" Bol (born 22 February 1994) is an Australian middle-distance runner who competes in the 800 metres. He represented Australia at the 2016 Rio Olympics, placed fourth at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and won the silver medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. Bol also competed at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Early life and education Born in Khartoum, Sudan, Bol's mother Hanan Kuku is Sudanese of Nubian ethnicity, and his father Abdalla Bol is an ethnic Dinka from the region that is now South Sudan. His family fled the Second Sudanese Civil War when he was four. In 2016, it was falsely reported that his family lived in an Egyptian refugee camp before emigrating to Australia. Bol has stated that "despite what some people have said and written, we never lived in a refugee camp."

At the age of eight, Bol arrived in Toowoomba, Queensland.

Athletics career Bol was a promising basketballer in Perth, Western Australia. When he was 16, a teacher at St Norbert College suggested he try 800 metres running after a promising cross-country race. At the Games, Bol finished sixth in his heat with a time of 1:49.36.

In June 2018 at an IAAF meet in Stockholm, Sweden, he set a personal best of 1:44.56 in the 800 m defeating training partner Joseph Deng. That year Bol finished seventh in his specialty at the World Championships held in Eugene, Oregon with a time of 1:45.51 before claiming the silver medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in 1:47.66. His suspension was lifted the following month because his B sample returned an atypical finding (ATF) for EPO, though Sport Integrity Australia continued its investigation. In August 2023, Bol was officially cleared by Sports Integrity Australia.

Return to racing Bol returned to racing but went out of the heats at the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary.

Bol won the 2025 Australian Championships in Perth in April, running 1:43.79 for the 800 metres. He was one of the racers who participated in Grand Slam Track in 2025. He set a new 1:42.55 Australian record for the 800 metres at the 2025 Herculis Diamond League event in July. Bol competed for Australia at the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, Japan, in September 2025 in the men's 800 metres.

Bol won ahead of fellow Justin Rinaldi–coached athlete Bob Abdelrahim in the 800 metres at the Perth Track Classic on 14 February 2026, running 1:43.89 to set a new meet record. Later that month, he also won ahead of Abdelrahim in the 800 metres at the Hobart Track Classic in Tasmania. Bol was selected for 2026 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Toruń, Poland, in March 2026. Racing indoors for the first time in seven years, Bol reached his first global final for four years, progressing through the rounds over 800 metres and winning his semi-final in a time of 1:46.21 ahead of Allon Clay of Japan. Bol set a new Oceania indoor record in the final, placing fourth overall in 1:45.14. On 16 June, Bol won over 1000 metres in an Oceanian record of 2:15.13 at the Golden Spike meeting in Ostrava.

Personal life Bol became engaged to Mahtut Yaynu in March 2024. They have a daughter, born in October 2024.

Achievements International competitions

Circuit performances

Wins and titles Diamond League 2018: Stockholm BAUHAUS-galan (800 m)

National titles Australian Athletics Championships 800 metres: 2019, 2021, 2022

Personal bests 600 metres – 1:16.26 (Glendale 2019) 800 metres – 1:42.55 (Monaco 2025) 800 metres indoor – 1:45.14 (Toruń 2026) 1500 metres – 3:34.52 (Décines 2023)