European marathon champion Iliass Aouani won the individual title at the European 10,000m Cup on home soil in La Spezia on Saturday (23) with a dominant gun-to-tape display in 27:50.05.
In his first track race at any distance in three years, Aouani broke away with just the pacemaker for company before ploughing on to an unopposed victory to become just the third Italian winner of this title after Daniele Meucci (2016) and Yemaneberhan Crippa (2019, 2023), the latter a late withdrawal from the Italian team.
Aouani tracked the pacemaker through halfway in 13:46.12 which put him on schedule not just for the qualifying standard of 27:50 for the European Athletics Championships but also set him up for an improvement of his lifetime best of 27:45.81, a mark which dates back to 2021.
The Italian marathon record-holder still looked strong after the pacemaker took him within eight laps of the finish but Aouani's lap times and kilometre splits began to drift in the closing stages, covering the seventh, eighth and ninth kilometres in either 2:49 or 2:50.
As he reached the bell in 26:44.44, Aouani needed to muster up a 65.56 last lap to seal the qualifying time. Despite finishing ahead of the wave-lights which were purportedly set at 27:50 pace, Aouani's finishing time of 27:50.05 was 0.05 adrift of the required qualifying time for Birmingham. However, he will qualify for Birmingham 2026 by virtue of being the European 10,000m Cup winner.
Aouani, who will forego his marathon title defence at the 2026 European Athletics Championships in order to focus on the 10,000m in Birmingham, said: "It's been three years since I've worn spikes, and doing so today was a great feeling. Winning with the national team on home soil is something I'll always remember.
"Doing it in front of my family, who are watching me run for the first time in person wearing the Italian colours, makes it all the more special. I want to win a medal in Birmingham before I can get back to the marathon in the autumn."
Team gold for France again
As expected, France defended their team title, their fourth title from the last five editions of the European 10,000m Cup, with Italy and Spain winning silver and bronze respectively.
In a frantic sprint finish for the minor medals which reduced Aouani's winning margin significantly, Simon Bedard won the race for silver in 27:52.66, just ahead of last year's runner-up Valentin Gondouin who had to settle for bronze in 27:53.09.
The French triumvirate was completed by Baptiste Guyon in fifth in 27:54.53, one of seven athletes in the 'A' race to set a lifetime best. There was also an Andorran record for Nahuel Carabana in 17th in 28:47.06.
In the 'B' race, Matthew Ramdsen made an excellent senior debut in a British vest with a patient and well-timed victory, also with a lifetime best.
The 23-year-old, who finished sixth in the U23 race at the 2025 SPAR European Cross Country Championships, bided his time in the pack before unleashing a last 200 metres of 27.67 for victory in 29:11.69 ahead of Czechia's Martin Zajic (29:13.02) and Portugal’s Rui Pinto (29:13.86).
The conditions at the start of the main programme in La Spezia were such that only nine of the 25 starters broke the 30 minute-barrier in the ‘B’ race.
Top-10 finishers
1. Iliass Aouani (ITA) - 27:50.05
2. Simon Bedard (FRA) - 27:52.66
3. Valentin Gondouin (FRA) - 27:53.09
4. Simon Debognies (BEL) - 27:54.06
5. Baptiste Guyon (FRA) - 27:54.53
6. Pasquale Selvarolo (ITA) - 28:00.03
7. Jesús Ramos (ESP) - 28:11.26
8. Bastien Augusto (FRA) - 28:19.79
9. Eduardo Menacho (ESP) - 28:26.40
10. Gábor Karsai (HUN) - 28:31.00
Photos courtesy of Sergio Mateo