The tiger, who likes to call Thierry Ndikumwenayo, looked like a rat on the twisted circuit of the European Cross Championship, in Lagoa, in the Portuguese Algarve. There was a mouse who escaped with the Frenchman Jimmy Gressier, the athlete who returned from the last World Cup in Tokyo, in September, with the gold medal in the 10,000 m and the bronze medal in the 5,000 m. The day Gressier proclaimed himself champion, the Spaniard, born in Burundi, saw him win the sprint of yesteryear, from his ninth position in this final. But in Lagoa, although he came out of the flu, he found himself with the strength to move forward, move forward, move forward, hiding behind his back. After one of these turns, Gressier headed to his left to look for his rival, and the mouse came out pulled from the right. Tiró and tiró Ndikumwenayo, playing with his opponent in every turn, and in the end, without strength, the Frenchman fell on a support and surrendered to the Spanish superiority.
Ndikumwenayo, bronze last year, in Rome, on the European track, over 10,000 m, won his first gold medal for Spain. A success which comes after a year of ups and downs. The fondista, who entered Castellón with Lluís Torlà, studying athletics and the latest technologies applied to his sport, left Tokyo very frustrated, but quickly realized the birth of his first daughter. Luego, the doubts, which arose when everyone had to walk from the Sierra Nevada because of anemia. And finally, his coronation as European cross-country champion ahead of Gressier, a great race finisher, and the Swiss Dominic Lobalu.
The new champion, who had finished third in 2024, led the triumph of the Spanish team in the absolute category, reinforced by the sixth position of Abdessamad Oukhelfen and the ninth of Aarón de las Heras.
El Europeo was a triumphant journey for Spain, which dominated the medal with eight medals in total, three of which were gold: both in the absolute category and the indisputable triumph of María Forero, the phenomenon that rages from the bottom. The Portuguese player, who has lived in León for years with José Enrique Villacorta, became the first athlete in history, man or woman, to proclaim herself European cross-country champion in two different categories, first under 20 and now under 23. Next to it, in the same training group, the extreme Óscar Gaitán was forged, who entered second after fighting for the triumph throughout his under-20 career.
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