The men’s U20 race could be one of the most open races of the Lagoa 2025 SPAR European Cross Country Championships.
With three gold medallists from the distance races at the Tampere 2025 European Athletics U20 Championships set to clash, plus other viable contenders, it looks set to be a thrilling contest.
The SPAR European Cross Country Championships will be streamed live on the European Athletics website from 9.00am local time (10.00am CET.)
Five to watch:
- Kiyasettin Kara (TUR)
- Håkon Moe Berg (NOR)
- Karl Ottfalk (SWE)
- Magnus Øyen (NOR)
- Willem Renders (BEL)
Key storylines:
- Can Sweden’s Karl Ottfalk graduate to gold?
- Could it be a Norwegian double?
- Who will emerge from the pack of contenders?
Karl Ottfalk is a consistent medal contender on track and cross country. This year he won 5000m silver and 3000m bronze at the Tampere 2025 European Athletics U20 Championships.
He was fifth at last year’s Antalya 2024 SPAR European Cross Country Championships and was fourth the previous year in Brussels. He recently won U20 gold at the Nordic Cross Country Championships, so is likely to be in form and in the mix again.
Norwegian Håkon Moe Berg showed a rare turn of pace this year when striking gold in the 1500m and 3000m at Tampere 2025. Can he translate that speed to the cross country.
With teammates including Magnus Øyen and Kristian Bråthen Børve, who were 4th and 10th in Antalya last year, they have another great chance to defend the team title for Norway.
Who might emerge from the pack to challenge? Tampere 2025 champions Kiyasettin Kara (3000m steeplechase) and Willem Renders (5000m) could be looking to add a continental cross country title to the track titles won in the summer.
Dark horses include European U20 3000m silver medallist Kristers Kudlis of Latvia and Czechia’s Adam Červinka, the European U18 champion over 2000m steeplechase.
Without an outstanding favourite, it could make for a fascinating contest. The field will have to wary of leaving it to a sprint finish on the 4.45km course. Moe Berg’s finishing speed which he demonstrated during the summer is likely to be a factor if he is still in contention in the closing stages.
What they said:
Hakon Moe Berg: "I still feel quite firmly planted on the ground, so it’s not a problem."
Did you know?
The winning margins in the last three men’s U20 races at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships have been 0:02, 0:01 and 0:01.