Ethiopia’s Likina Amebaw and Burundi’s Rodrigue Kwizera lead the fields for the Cross Internacional de Soria, the fourth Gold level meeting of this season’s World Athletics Cross Country Tour, on Sunday (16).
Kwizera is a three-time victor in Soria, having triumphed in 2021, 2023 and 2024, and the 25-year-old is keen to maintain the momentum following his win at the Cross Internacional de Italica in Seville last weekend.
The women’s race will also be held over 8km and promises a showdown between Amebaw and Kenya’s Sheila Jebet. Amebaw will be making her third appearance of this cross-country season as she won in Amorebieta last month and finished third last weekend at the Italica. She won in Soria in 2023 and aims for her third podium spot following her 2021 runner-up finish.
Jebet secured second place in Cardiff last weekend and seeks her first win on the European cross-country circuit. The 20-year-old finished fourth in the U20 race at the last World Cross Country Championships and then placed fifth in the 5000m at the World U20 Championships.
Local hopes rest on Idaira Prieto and Marta Perez. Spanish 1500m record-holder Perez has been living and training in Madrid for the last 14 years but she is a Soria native and will enjoy the support of her home crowd as she did last year when she placed fifth. She competed at the World Championships in Tokyo, as did Prieto, who is coached by her father Antonio Prieto, a two-time fifth-place finisher at the World Cross Country Championships.
Illustrious past winners in Soria include 2000 Olympic 5000m champion Million Wolde, 2001 world 10,000m gold medallist Charles Kamathi, 1997 world 10,000m champion Sally Barsosio, 2007 world cross country champion Zersenay Tadese, 2010 world cross country gold medallist Joseph Ebuya, 2009 world 10,000m champion Linet Masai and two-time world cross country gold medallist Jacob Kiplimo.
The venue of the event will be the Monte Valonsadero circuit, a beautiful forest on the outskirts of Soria. Weather forecasters predict a wet and windy day on Sunday, with the temperature ranging between 10-12°C by the time of the event.
(World Athletics)
