14th November 2025 11:51
European U23 3000m steeplechase champion Ilona Mononen will lead the Finland team at the Lagoa 2025 SPAR European Cross Country Championships on 14 December.
The 21-year-old steeplechaser has enjoyed an excellent year on the track, winning gold at the Bergen 2025 European Athletics U23 Championships and the FISU World University Games and taking maximum points for Finland by winning at the Madrid 2025 European Athletics Team Championships 1st Division.
She is a three-time medallist at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships, having won bronze in the U23 race at Antalya 2024, U23 silver at Brussels 2023 and U20 bronze at Piemonte 2022 and will start as one of the favourites in Lagoa.