2010 European Cross Country Championships
Encyclopedia
The 2010 European Cross Country Championships
European Cross Country Championships
The European Cross Country Championships is an annual international cross country running competition. Organised by the European Athletic Association, it is the area championships for the region and is held in December each year...

was a continental cross country running
Cross country running
Cross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...

 competition that took place on 12 December in Albufeira
Albufeira
Albufeira is a Portuguese municipality in the Faro District, Algarve region. Its name came from the Arabic: البحيرة . The city has a population of 13,646. The municipality has a population of 35,281 inhabitants and a total area of 140.6 km²...

, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...

. It was the second time that the country hosted the event, building upon the 1997 edition
1997 European Cross Country Championships
The 4th European Cross Country Championships were held at Oeiras in Portugal on 14 December 1997. Danish orienteer Carsten Jørgensen took the title in the men's competition and Joalsiae Llado won the women's race.-Men individual 10km:83 runners finished....

 held in Oeiras
Oeiras
Oeiras is a town and a municipality in western Lisbon Metropolitan Area, Portugal. It is in conurbation with Lisbon, the parish population is 34,850, and the entire Oeiras Municipality has 168,475 inhabitants. The town of Oeiras is one of the most populous towns in Portugal...

.

Serhiy Lebid won the men's race for his ninth victory of the championship – a record for the competition. France took the men's team title. Jessica Augusto
Jessica Augusto
Jéssica Augusto is a Portuguese runner who competes in cross country, road running and in middle-distance and long-distance track events....

 comprehensively won the women's race for the host nation and also led the Portuguese team to a team gold medal. At total of 468 athletes from a record number of 34 nations competed at the event.

Preparation

The race took place on a purpose-built course near the city, which also hosts the annual Almond Blossom Cross Country
Almond Blossom Cross Country
The Almond Blossom Cross Country is an annual international cross country running competition which takes place in Albufeira, Portugal in early March. It is one of the IAAF permit meetings which serve as qualifying events for the IAAF World Cross Country Championships. It is held in co-operation...

. Albufeira was chosen as the host at the 120th European Athletics Council Meeting in October 2008, defeating a rival bid from Velenje
Velenje
Velenje is a town and municipality in northern Slovenia. The municipality has 33.331 inhabitants. Staro Velenje is first mentioned in written doucments dating to 1264 and 1374 as small market town and was a center of handicraft and trade...

 (which was chosen for the 2011 edition instead).
Hayley Yelling
Hayley Yelling
Hayley Higham is a British runner. She is the sister-in-law of fellow British runner Liz Yelling. She married Jamie Higham in 2009....

 entered the race as the defending women's champion while Alemayehu Bezabeh
Alemayehu Bezabeh
Alemayehu Bezabeh Desta is an Ethiopian-born athlete who represents Spain internationally. He competes in middle- and long-distance running on the track, and also in cross country...

, the reigning men's champion, did not take part in the competition. High-profile investigations into doping
Doping (sport)
The use of performance-enhancing drugs in sport is commonly referred to by the term "doping", particularly by those organizations that regulate competitions. The use of performance enhancing drugs is mostly done to improve athletic performance. This is why many sports ban the use of performance...

 in Spain immediately preceded the championships and Bezabeh was among the athletes implicated in Operación Galgo
Operación Galgo
Operación Galgo is an investigation into doping in athletics by the Guardia Civil in Spain. Initiated in April 2010, the investigation came to public attention with the raid of houses and the arrest of high profile athletes, coaches and doctors, among others.Among those arrested were Marta...

. As both the reigning champion and the 2009 silver medallist Mo Farah were absent, the men's race was seen as a relatively open competition, with Ukrainian Serhiy Lebid, Spanish runners Ayad Lamdassem
Ayad Lamdassem
Ayad Lamdassem is a Moroccan-born long distance runner who competes for Spain internationally.He first arrived in Spain in 2002 as part of the Moroccan contingent for the World University Cross Country Championships, which was being held in Santiago de Compostela that year...

 and Jesús España
Jesús España
Jesús España Cobo is a Spanish runner who mostly concentrates on the 3000 and 5000 metres....

 being the foremost protagonists. The withdrawal of Rosa Morató
Rosa Morató
Rosa María Morató is a Catalan runner who specializes in the steeplechase. She finished eighth at the 2007 World Championships. She represented Spain in the steeplechase at the 2008 Summer Olympics. Her personal best time is 9:26.23 minutes, which she achieved in July 2007 in Heusden-Zolder,...

 (runner-up in 2009) left Jessica Augusto
Jessica Augusto
Jéssica Augusto is a Portuguese runner who competes in cross country, road running and in middle-distance and long-distance track events....

 as the provisional favourite for the women's race. Forming a strong team, three other Portuguese runners (Ana Dulce Félix
Ana Dulce Félix
Ana Dulce Félix is a long distance runner who competes in track, cross country, and road running events.Born in Azurém, Guimarães Municipality, Portugal, Félix began her career as a junior at the 2000 and 2001 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, although she did not break the top 60 runners on...

, Marisa Barros
Marisa Barros
Elisa Marisa Branco Barros Rodrigues is a female long-distance runner from Portugal who specialises in marathon running. She ran for her country at the 2008 Summer Olympics and was sixth at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics...

 and Sara Moreira
Sara Moreira
Sara Moreira is a Portuguese female long-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase and 5000 metres. She reached finals at the World Championships in Athletics in 2007 and 2009. She represented Portugal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics...

) were expected to challenge for medals, as were Yelling and Adriënne Herzog (also directly implicated in Operación Galgo), who was third the previous year.

Races

The men's race remained relatively tight until the final lap. Six men were on equal footing at the bell: Lebid, Lamdassem, French duo Morhad Amdouni
Morhad Amdouni
Morhad Amdouni is a French middle- and long-distance runner. He was European junior champion in track and cross country running in 2007. He won the senior team gold medal at the 2010 European Cross Country Championships....

 and Abdellatif Meftah
Abdellatif Meftah
Abdellatif Meftah is a French long distance runner.He ran for Morocco at the Pan Arab Games and won a gold medal in the half marathon for his home nation. Transferring his nationality, Meftah represented France at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and finished in 40th place...

, and Rui Pedro Silva
Rui Pedro Silva
Rui Pedro Silva is a Portuguese athlete specialized in middle and long distance running.- Reference :...

 and Yousef El Kalai, both representing the hosts. Lamdassem was the first to move away from the pack, seizing the lead, and only Lebid followed. The Ukrainian overhauled Lamdassam in the final stages and maintained a clear lead to win his ninth title – a record for the competition. Lamdassem just held off a late sprint from El Kalai to take the runner-up spot. Meftah and Amdouni finished shortly after for fourth and fifth, leading the French men to a team victory.

Jessica Augusto made her gold medal intentions known as she took the lead in the opening stages. The Portuguese athlete never relinquished the position and produced a largely unrivalled, solo performance. Spaniard Alessandra Aguilar
Alessandra Aguilar
Alessandra Aguilar is a Spanish long-distance runner who specialises in marathon running. She represented her country in the event at the 2008 Summer Olympics and at the World Championships in Athletics the following year....

 shadowed her in the middle part of the race but later dropped out of contention. With Augusto clear in front, Binnaz Uslu
Binnaz Uslu
Binnaz Uslu is a Turkish middle-distance and long-distance runner. She is a member of Enkaspor athletics team.She participated at the 2005 Mediterranean Games in Almería and won a bronze medal in 800 m with 2:02.68. In the 4×400 metres relay, she won another bronze medal with her teammates Özge...

, Ana Dulce Félix, Fionnuala Britton
Fionnuala Britton
Fionnuala Britton is an Irish runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase.She began her international junior career in cross country running in 2001, highlighted by 33rd place at the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships...

 and Tetyana Holovchenko
Tetyana Holovchenko
Tetyana Holovchenko is a Ukrainian middle/long-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 and 3000 metres.-Achievements:-Personal bests:*800 metres - 2:00.81 min *1500 metres - 4:05.01 min...

 battled for the minor medals in the second half of the race. Félix and Uslu fought for the runner-up spot with the Turk eventually winning out. Augusto's lead was so significant that she slowed and celebrated throughout the home straight, still crossing the line with a five second advantage. Félix took the bronze just ahead Britton, helping the Portuguese women to the team gold medal, and Holovchenko rounded out the top five.

Hassan Chahdi of France took the men's under-23 title while Ethiopian-born Meryem Erdoğan
Meryem Erdoğan
Meryem Erdoğan is an Ethiopian-born Turkish female long-distance runner.-Personal life:...

 won the women's under-23 section for Turkey. The junior races were won by Abdelaziz Merzougui and Charlotte Purdue
Charlotte Purdue
Charlotte Purdue is a British long-distance runner who competes in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres, as well as cross country running. After winning a number of youth titles at national level, she had her first international success at the European Cross Country Championships, winning medals in...

.

Senior men

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Serhiy Lebid 29:15
Ayad Lamdassem
Ayad Lamdassem
Ayad Lamdassem is a Moroccan-born long distance runner who competes for Spain internationally.He first arrived in Spain in 2002 as part of the Moroccan contingent for the World University Cross Country Championships, which was being held in Santiago de Compostela that year...

29:18
Yousef El Kalai 29:19
4 Abdellatif Meftah
Abdellatif Meftah
Abdellatif Meftah is a French long distance runner.He ran for Morocco at the Pan Arab Games and won a gold medal in the half marathon for his home nation. Transferring his nationality, Meftah represented France at the 2010 IAAF World Cross Country Championships and finished in 40th place...

29:21
5 Morhad Amdouni
Morhad Amdouni
Morhad Amdouni is a French middle- and long-distance runner. He was European junior champion in track and cross country running in 2007. He won the senior team gold medal at the 2010 European Cross Country Championships....

29:21
6 Andrea Lalli
Andrea Lalli
Andrea Lalli is an Italian long distance runner.He started his career with medals at the European Cross Country Championships, taking the junior individual and team titles at the 2006 edition and then winning the under-23 title in 2008...

29:28
7 Eduardo Mbengani 29:29
8 Rui Pedro Silva
Rui Pedro Silva
Rui Pedro Silva is a Portuguese athlete specialized in middle and long distance running.- Reference :...

29:32
9 Jesús España
Jesús España
Jesús España Cobo is a Spanish runner who mostly concentrates on the 3000 and 5000 metres....

29:32
10 Mokhtar Benhari 29:34
11 Yevgeniy Rybakov 29:35
12 Steffen Uliczka
Steffen Uliczka
Steffen Uliczka is a German track and field athlete who mainly competes in the 3000 metres steeplechase. He was the 2010 winner of the Warandecross cross country meeting in Tilburg, Netherlands.- Achievements :...

29:36

Team race
Rank Team Points

Meftah
Amdouni
Benhari
Driss El Himer
Driss El Himer
Driss El Himer is a French long-distance runner.He competed in the marathon at the 2004 Olympics, finishing 68th....

33

El Kalai
Mbengani
Rui Pedro Silva
Rui Silva
Rui Silva
Rui Silva is a Portuguese athlete, who represents Sporting Clube de Portugal. As a distance runner, he specializes at the 1500 and 3000 m events, although he has at times run the 800 metres as well. He is the national champion at 1500 m...

35

Lamdassem
España
Ricardo Serrano
Ricardo Serrano (athlete)
Ricardo Serrano is a Spanish long-distance runner who specializes in the 10,000 metres.He finished ninth at the 2006 European Championships...


Francisco Javier López
58
4 96
5 99
6 106
7 142
8 181

  • Totals: 75 entrants, 74 starters, 71 finishers, 10 teams.

Senior women

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Jéssica Augusto
Jessica Augusto
Jéssica Augusto is a Portuguese runner who competes in cross country, road running and in middle-distance and long-distance track events....

26:52
Binnaz Uslu
Binnaz Uslu
Binnaz Uslu is a Turkish middle-distance and long-distance runner. She is a member of Enkaspor athletics team.She participated at the 2005 Mediterranean Games in Almería and won a bronze medal in 800 m with 2:02.68. In the 4×400 metres relay, she won another bronze medal with her teammates Özge...

26:57
Ana Dulce Félix
Ana Dulce Félix
Ana Dulce Félix is a long distance runner who competes in track, cross country, and road running events.Born in Azurém, Guimarães Municipality, Portugal, Félix began her career as a junior at the 2000 and 2001 IAAF World Cross Country Championships, although she did not break the top 60 runners on...

26:59
4 Fionnuala Britton
Fionnuala Britton
Fionnuala Britton is an Irish runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase.She began her international junior career in cross country running in 2001, highlighted by 33rd place at the 2003 IAAF World Cross Country Championships...

26:59
5 Tetyana Holovchenko
Tetyana Holovchenko
Tetyana Holovchenko is a Ukrainian middle/long-distance runner who specializes in the 1500 and 3000 metres.-Achievements:-Personal bests:*800 metres - 2:00.81 min *1500 metres - 4:05.01 min...

27:04
6 Marisa Barros
Marisa Barros
Elisa Marisa Branco Barros Rodrigues is a female long-distance runner from Portugal who specialises in marathon running. She ran for her country at the 2008 Summer Olympics and was sixth at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics...

27:06
7 Hatti Dean
Hatti Dean
Harriet Dean is a British long-distance runner.In August 2008 it was announced she would be unable to compete in the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing due to a stress fracture to her ankle....

27:08
8 Alessandra Aguilar
Alessandra Aguilar
Alessandra Aguilar is a Spanish long-distance runner who specialises in marathon running. She represented her country in the event at the 2008 Summer Olympics and at the World Championships in Athletics the following year....

27:09
9 Sara Moreira
Sara Moreira
Sara Moreira is a Portuguese female long-distance runner who specializes in the 3000 metres steeplechase and 5000 metres. She reached finals at the World Championships in Athletics in 2007 and 2009. She represented Portugal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics...

27:26
10 Ana Dias 27:27
11 Fatiha Klilech-Fauvel 27:27
12 Maria Sig Møller 27:31

Team race
Rank Team Points

Augusto
Félix
Barros
Moreira
19

Dean
Louise Damen
Stephanie Twell
Stephanie Twell
Stephanie April "Steph" Twell is a Scottish middle distance runner. She was the winner of the 1500 metres at the World Junior Championships in 2008, and is a three time winner of the European Cross Country Championships junior women's race as well as being part of four winning Great Britain...


Helen Clitheroe
Helen Clitheroe
Helen Teresa Clitheroe is a British middle- and long-distance runner coached by Trevor Painter. She competed in the 1500 metres at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney and in the 3000 m steeplechase at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing...

65

Aguilar
Diana Martín
Nuria Fernández
Nuria Fernández
Nuria Fernández Domínguez is a Spanish middle distance runner. She specializes in the 1500 metres and is the Spanish record holder in the mile run and the 1500 m indoors....


Irene Pelayo
72
4 79
5 101
6 132
7 147
  • Totals: 49 entrants, 49 starters, 47 finishers, 7 teams.

Under-23 men

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Hassan Chahdi 24:11
Florian Carvalho
Florian Carvalho
Florian Carvalho is a French middle and long distance runner.-Achievements:-References:...

24:14
Yegor Nikolayev
Yegor Nikolayev
-Achievements:-References:...

24:15
4 Jeroen d'Hoedt 24:23
5 Ricardo Mateus 24:25
6 Siarhei Platonau
Siarhei Platonau
-Achievements:-References:...

24:28
7 Tiago Costa 24:32
8 Sindre Buraas 24:34
9 Ricky Stevenson 24:34
10 Florian Orth 24:44
11 David McCarthy 24:46
12 Sebastián Martos 24:47

Team race
Rank Team Points

McCarthy
Brendan O'Neill
Michael Mulhare
David Rooney
60

Chahdi
Carvalho
Abdelatif Hadjam
Etienne Diemunsch
78

Martos
Antonia Abadía
Javier García
Víctor Corrales
79
4 104
5 112
6 114
7 133
8 134
  • Totals: 102 entrants, 102 starters, 96 finishers, 16 teams.

Under-23 women

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Meryem Erdoğan
Meryem Erdoğan
Meryem Erdoğan is an Ethiopian-born Turkish female long-distance runner.-Personal life:...

20:08
Cristina Jordán 20:17
Emma Pallant 20:28
4 Ganna Nosenko 20:36
5 Roxana Birca 20:39
6 Sandra Eriksson
Sandra Eriksson
Sandra Elisabet Eriksson is a Finnish middle distance runner, who specializes mainly in the 3000 metres steeplechase. Her personal best is 9:45.50, achieved in September 2009 in Paris....

20:41
7 Nathalie Gray 20:43
8 Viktoriya Pogorielska 20:46
9 Yektarina Gorbunova 20:46
10 Lucie Sekanová 20:47
11 Patricia Laubertie 20:47
12 Natalya Vlasova 20:47

Team race
Rank Team Points

Pallant
Gray
Emily Pidgeon
Emily Pidgeon
Emily Pidgeon is a British athlete competing in the sport of running at international level. She is a former 5000 metres European Junior Champion . She was bronze medallist in the 2007 European Junior Championships in Hengelo...


Sarah Waldron
47

Gorbunova
Vlasova
Lyudmila Lebedeva
Alfiya Khasanova
49

Nosenko
Pogorielska
Olga Skrypak
Lyudmyla Kovalenko
65
4 94
5 107
6 117
7 118
8 194
  • Totals: 65 entrants, 64 starters, 61 finishers, 8 teams.

Junior men

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Abdelaziz Merzougui 18:07
Nemanja Cerovac 18:07
Rui Pinto 18:09
4 Ivan Strebkov 18:09
5 Sondre Nordstad Moen 18:16
6 Andrey Rusakov 18:18
7 Jesper van der Wielen 18:19
8 Sándor Szábo 18:23
9 Marek Kowalski 18:25
10 Ryan Saunders 18:27
11 Romain Collenot-Spriet 18:31
12 Shane Quinn 18:31

Team race
Rank Team Points

Saunders
Jonathan Hay
John McDonnell
Andrew Combs
62

Pinto
Emanuel Rolim
José Costa
Nuno Santos
74

Rusakov
Victor Saenko
Ilgizar Safiulin
Nikolai Lialikov
85
4 88
5 120
6 130
7 145
8 155
  • Totals: 104 entrants, 104 starters, 99 finishers, 17 teams.

Junior women

Individual race
Rank Athlete Country Time (m
Minute
A minute is a unit of measurement of time or of angle. The minute is a unit of time equal to 1/60th of an hour or 60 seconds. In the UTC time scale, a minute on rare occasions has 59 or 61 seconds; see leap second. The minute is not an SI unit; however, it is accepted for use with SI units...

:s
Second
The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock....

)
Charlotte Purdue
Charlotte Purdue
Charlotte Purdue is a British long-distance runner who competes in the 5000 metres and 10,000 metres, as well as cross country running. After winning a number of youth titles at national level, she had her first international success at the European Cross Country Championships, winning medals in...

12:42
Amela Terzić
Amela Terzić
Amela Terzić is a Serbian long-distance runner. She won two gold medals at 2011 European Athletics Junior Championships in Tallinn....

12:59
Emelia Gorecka
Emelia Gorecka
Emelia Gorecka , is a British track athlete. She runs for Aldershot Farnham and District AC and lives in Bookham, Surrey...

13:00
4 Gulshat Fazlitdinova 13:03
5 Corrina Harrer 13:08
6 Zenobie Vangansbeke 13:09
7 Ciara Mageean 13:16
8 Ioana Doaga 13:18
9 Lily Partridge 13:19
10 Annabel Gummow 13:19
11 Gesa Krause 13:22
12 Kate Avery 13:24

Team race
Rank Team Points

Purdue
Gorecka
Partridge
Gummow
23

Harrer
Krause
Maya Rehberg
Jannika John
53

Doaga
Mirela Lavric
Anca Maria Bunea
Dana Elena Login
64
4 99
5 103
6 128
7 149
8 165
  • Totals: 76 entrants, 75 starters, 74 finishers, 11 teams.

Total medal table

1 4 1 2 7
2 2 2 3 7
3 2 2 0 4
4 1 2 3 6
5 1 1 0 2
6 1 0 1 2
7 1 0 0 1
8 0 2 0 2
9 0 1 2 3
10 0 1 0 1
11 0 0 1 1
Total 12 12 12 36

  • Note: Totals include both individual and team medals, with medals in the team competition counting as one medal.

External links

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