With a sustained surge in the final kilometre, Spain’s Maria Forero eased to women’s 5000m gold at the European Athletics U23 Championships in Bergen on Sunday (20) evening.
Bergen 2025 is being live streamed on the European Athletics website courtesy of Eurovision Sport.
Forero continues her progression through the ranks
Forero opened up a gap of more than eight seconds on her rivals in the last kilometre, giving the Spaniard an ample cushion to blow kisses and wave to her supporters as she came down the home straight of the Fana Stadium for the last time, crossing the line in 15:43.44.
“I aimed for gold and this is what I achieved. All members of my family and friends were here in Bergen to support me. Onto the next challenges,” said Forero who was crowned U20 champion at the 2022 SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Turin.
Germany’s Vanessa Mikitenko, the daughter of former London and Berlin Marathon winner Irina, was rewarded with her first major individual medal with silver in 15:51.97 while Ireland’s Anika Thompson, who surged off the front just after the one kilometre mark and led until the fourth kilometre when Forero made her decisive burst, held off France’s Julia David-Smith on the last lap for her second medal of the championships - 15:56.80 to 16:00.62.
One notable DNF was Denmark’s Sofia Thøgersen, a prolific medalist in European age-group events since 2021. In a race which was held in warm conditions and high humidity, the Dane was still in the leading quintet and in contention for the medals when she suddenly drifted off the track and collapsed at the four kilometre-checkpoint.
Kocak ends busy championships on a winning note
One day after stepping off the track in the 800m final after trying in vain to follow Audrey Werro’s relentless pace, Türkiye’s Dilek Kocak struck gold in her fifth race of the championships in a tactical women’s 1500m final.
"I was thinking of getting at least a silver or a bronze in the 800m yesterday. Yesterday's competition was so strong I could not make it until the end so I had to quit it. But I was not upset and focused my mind on today's competition. Because if I thought about yesterday and focused on that I knew I could not get a medal today,” said Kocak.
After a relatively fast opening lap of 66.90, the pace began to slow and the field bunched together through 800m in 2:17.79 with Kocak in the lead and positioned well in a final which was developing into a last lap burn-up.
Coming down the home straight for the penultimate time, the 12-strong field was three abreast as Kocak imperceptibly wound up the pace from the front.
France’s European U23 leader Adele Gay extricated herself from a tightly bunched pack on the last lap and onto the shoulder of Kocak with 150 metres but the 19-year-old Turkish athlete kept a stride ahead down the home straight, producing a last lap of 61.85 to take the title in a season’s best of 4:08.79 by one-tenth from the fast-finishing Gay in 4:08.89 with Ireland’s Eimaer Maher winning bronze in 4:09.54.