Reigning European 10,000m champion Dominic Lobalu from Switzerland won the 10K Internacional de Bilbao on Saturday (7) in 27:36.
Lobalu has been in excellent form across all surfaces in recent months. He won bronze at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in December and finished second in the Barcelona Half Marathon last month in 59:26. Just last weekend, Lobalu won the 3000m title at the Swiss Indoor Championships.
Lobalu won by a comfortable margin from Morocco’s Abderrahmane Aferdi (27:53) with Ethiopia’s Ayana Geneti third (27:56).
In the women’s race which was won by Ethiopia’s Asayech Ayichew in a fast 30:01, Spain’s Irene Sanchez-Escribano finished fifth on her return to racing from maternity leave in 32:25.
Herbiet joins a list of legends in Jacksonville
In her first race since helping Belgium to team gold at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships, Chloe Herbiet was in victorious form over 15km in hot conditions at the Gate River Run in Jacksonville, Florida on Saturday.
Herbiet took the victory in another Belgian record of 47:58 ahead of US Olympic marathon trials winners Fiona O’Keeffe in 48:22.
She became the first ever Belgian winner of a historic race which dates back to 1978 and joins an illustrious list of past champions which includes Joan Benoit Samuelson, Grete Waitz, Lynn Jennings, Deena Kastor and Shalane Flanagan.
Elsewhere around Europe…
Mekdes Woldu equalled the French half marathon record in the Lisbon Half Marathon on Sunday (8), finishing seventh in 68:20 to match Alessia Zarbo’s recently set record.
Mariana Machado finished 10th on her half marathon debut in 70:10 and took the national title at the distance in the process.
In the men’s race which was won by Uganda’s Jacob Kiplimo in a world record of 57:20, France’s Valentin Gondouin was the top European in 11th in 60:35, just ahead of Portugal’s Samuel Barata who won the national title in 60:36.
World 5000m silver medallist Isaac Kimeli from Belgium finished fifth on his half marathon debut in the Paris Half Marathon on Sunday, clocking 61:26 in a race won by Kenya’s Kennedy Kimutai in 60:11.
Nils Voigt won the men’s race at the German 10km Championships on Sunday in a lifetime best of 27:56.
European 10km silver medallist Eva Dieterich won the women’s title in 31:54 by just one second from Elena Burkard in 31:55.