Marathon, Italy celebrating at European Championships with Iliass Aouani
Fantastic Sunday for Italy at the European Road Running Championships. Blue gold also in the marathon in Leuven, Belgium, with the victory of Iliass Aouani after a magnificent sprint. It is the big day of the Milanese engineer, author of a star race, always in the leading positions before the decisive action to close in 2h09:05 beating three Israelis: Gashau Ayale (2h09:08), overcome in the final duel, then the vice world champion Maru Teferi, bronze in 2h09:17, and Haimro Alame, fourth with 2h09:27.
The Italian team’s second blue marathon runner was the first to win the marathon.
Second Italian ever with 2h06:06 last December in Valencia and already the national record holder (2h07:16 in 2023 in Barcelona), the 29-year-old coached in Ferrara by Massimo Magnani seizes the most important result of his career. In the men’s marathon for Italy it is the sixth European gold in history, following those of Gelindo Bordin (1986 and 1990), Stefano Baldini (1998 and 2006) and Daniele Meucci (2014). In the women’s, Giovanna Epis was fifth in 2h29:14. Two Spaniards in the top two places with Fatima Ouhaddou (2h27:14) ahead of Majida Maayouf (2h27:41), bronze to Israel’s Lonah Chemtai Salpeter (2h28:01) in a sprint over compatriot Maor Tiyouri (2h28:01). For the first time, the title is awarded in a dedicated event that becomes packed with blue medals: 6 in total with three golds (also Nadia Battocletti and the women’s team in the 10 km), one silver and two bronzes (in Saturday’s half marathon).
The race was run in a straight line, from Brussels to Leuven, on an undulating and treacherous course with light rain. Among the men just before the 20th km stretches Israeli Bukayawe Malede (1h03:52 at the half) who is caught and overtaken about ten kilometers ahead. Italy’s Iliass Aouani, wearing a black bandana to cover his head, travels in the group that also includes Turkey’s Ilham Tanui Ozbilen, Israelis Gashau Ayale, Haimro Alame and Yitayew Abuhay, in a challenge that becomes tactical, and so Malede falls back on the leading pack. After 30 km (1h30:55) in the lead are Aouani, Ozbilen and four athletes in Israeli jerseys: vice world champion Maru Teferi, Alame, Ayale and Malede, who then loses ground again. Five remain in front: Alame’s forcing is answered by Aouani, then Teferi takes the lead and the Azzurri seems to control with confidence (1h46:51 at 35 km). Four kilometers to go, the race turns into a challenge of Aouani against the three Israelis Teferi, Ayale and Alame: 2h02:26 at 40th km with Ozbilen at 22 seconds. In the final Teferi gets into trouble, when the sprint starts Alame also breaks away and then Aouani triumphs.
