Likina Amebaw, Rodrigue Kwizera and Berihu Aregawi are among the drawcards entered for the Cross Internacional de It\u00e1lica in Santiponce on the outskirts of the Spanish city of Seville this Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ethiopia\u2019s Amebaw has had a fantastic year, topped by her win at the World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest in September. That came just a few days prior to her world 5km win in Copenhagen. The 28-year-old, who trains under the guidance of Spanish coach Alberto Garc\u00eda, ended the track season as the world 5000m leader thanks to her PB of 14:18.41 in Rome. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
She then kicked off her cross-country campaign in style in Amorebieta where she won by more than half a minute ahead of Burundi\u2019s Francine Niyomukunzi, an 8:33.27 3000m athlete who will also be in attendance on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Yet the toughest opposition for the favourite Amebaw in the 9.5km race might come from a top-10 finisher at January\u2019s World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Kenya\u2019s Maurine Chebor who is fresh from a commanding win in San Sebasti\u00e1n.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In addition, four of the top five athletes from the U20 race in Tallahassee will also race. Ethiopia\u2019s Wosane Asefa was runner-up in Tallahassee and was also the 3000m silver medallist at the World U20 Championships in Oregon, while Uganda\u2019s Charity Cherop claimed a bronze medal in Tallahassee before taking 5000m gold and 3000m bronze in Oregon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kenya\u2019s Cynthia Chepkurui was fourth and Ethiopia\u2019s Yenenesh Shimket fifth in Tallahassee. Shimket went on to run a world U20 10km best of 30:21 in Brasov. They will all be joined in Santiponce by Birtukan Molla, a 30:50 10km specialist.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Local hopes rest on European U23 cross-country and 5000m champion Mar\u00eda Forero who placed second in San Sebasti\u00e1n last weekend, five seconds behind Chebor. She again faces France\u2019s European 3000m steeplechase record-holder Alice Finot, three weeks on from Forero beating the Spain-based French athlete at the Aranda de Duero cross-country race. There they clocked 30:26 and 30:36 to finish third and fourth, respectively. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The men\u2019s event features Ethiopia\u2019s three-time world cross-country silver medallist Berihu Aregawi. Having not competed since his cross-country win in Elgoibar in January, Aregawi\u2019s form is unknown but the Olympic 10,000m silver medallist should be eager to take revenge from his loss in Santiponce two years ago when he had to settle for third place behind Thierry Ndikumwenayo and Kwizera.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ndikumwenayo and Kwizera proved to be in excellent shape at the Valencia Half Marathon last month. Kwizera won in a Spanish record of 58:03, while Ndikumwenayo finished second in a massive career best of 58:09. They train together in Castell\u00f3n and each will be aiming for a third victory in It\u00e1lica as Kwizera won in 2021 and 2025 and Ndikumwenayo triumphed in 2022 and 2024. Kenenisa Bekele is so far the only athlete with three victories under his belt from the 2000s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last year\u2019s podium will gather again as Kenya\u2019s runner-up Andrew Alamisi and third-place finisher Denis Kipkoech Kemboi Kipkemoi join the cast. The latter showed fine shape last Sunday in San Sebasti\u00e1n where he secured a sprint victory over Uganda\u2019s Samuel Simba Cherop, who ran a 27:26 10km in Brasov last month. He will be joined by his compatriot Dismas Yeko, holder of a 27:24 10km career best set in Lille last April.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u00e1lica will also witness the much-awaited senior cross-country debut of Kenya\u2019s Frankline Kibet. The 19-year-old opened his year with a convincing world U20 victory in Tallahassee and he also clinched the world U20 5000m title in Oregon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
His fellow Kenyan Charles Kiboino will also be in show, while the Ethiopian contingent features world U20 5000m bronze medallist Demitew Kebede and Wegene Adisu, third in San Sebasti\u00e1n last weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Watch out too for Spain\u2019s Aar\u00f3n Las Heras. The 26-year-old made a promising half marathon debut in Valencia with a 1:00:08 performance and will be chasing a top-10 spot on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Famous previous winners in Santiponce include Fernando Mamede (1984 and 1985), Paul Kipkoech (1987 and 1988), Paul Tergat (1998 and 1999), Kenenisa Bekele (2003, 2004 and 2007), Leonard Komon (2010 and 2011), Joshua Cheptegei (2018), Jacob Kiplimo (2019), Paula Radcliffe (2001), Linet Masai (2010 and 2012) and Faith Kipyegon (2016).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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Likina Amebaw, Rodrigue Kwizera and Berihu Aregawi are among the drawcards entered for the Cross Internacional de It\u00e1lica<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":17474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[50,280],"class_list":["post-17473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsbeat","tag-athletics","tag-cross-country"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t