The DLV team garnered three medals in the half marathon event.
On the third day of the European Athletics Championships, the German athletics team has much to be happy about. In the half marathon, there are three medals to celebrate. Amanal Petros takes home the bronze medal in the individual event, leading his men's team to an impressive third place. The women's team follows suit, claiming silver.
Amanal Petros secured the bronze medal in Rome's half marathon after a nail-biting finish. As the German marathon record holder, he maintained his pace through every tempo attack and completed the race in 1:01:07 hours. Gold was awarded to the Italian Yemaneberhan Crippa (1:01:03), while his compatriot Pietro Riva (1:01:04) took silver. All three were significantly faster than the previous championship record of 1:02:03 hours.
Melat Kejeta missed out on individual glory, finishing fifth in 1:09:42 hours at the European Athletics Championships in Rome. Nevertheless, the German women's team, consisting of Kejeta, Domenika Mayer (11th, 1:10:49) and Esther Pfeiffer (18th, 1:11:28), managed to claim silver. Highly impressive was Karoline Bjerkeli Grövdal (Norway), who won the women's race with a record-breaking time of 1:08:09 hours, securing individual gold. She was followed by silver medalist Joan Chelimo Melly (Romania, 1:08:55) and Calli Thackery from Great Britain (1:08:58).
Fitwi and Petros led the way throughout the challenging course, starting at the Colosseum, passing St. Peter's Basilica, and concluding in the Stadio Olimpico. The torrid heat of previous days was mercifully absent, with the runners benefitting from a cloudy sky and mild temperatures. With a burst of speed ahead of the finish, the German pair increased the tempo of the lead group. Surprisingly, Petros then slowed down in the stadium lap, allowing Riva to snatch silver.
"We pushed each other as a team. It was an incredible feeling," said Petros, recounting the experience on ARD. "I just missed the speed for the gold medal at the finish. But with Samuel Fitwi finishing strongly in fifth place and Filimon Abraham's courageous race, our men's team won a bronze medal." This victory is the second individual medal for the German team in Italy, following shot putter Yemisi Ogunleye's third-place finish on Friday. Unfortunately, the marathon distance was not included in this year's program due to the upcoming Olympic Summer Games. Richard Ringer (28th, 1:03:53), Simon Boch (31st, 1:04:16), Hendrik Pfeiffer (34th, 1:04:32), Fabienne Königstein (20th, 1:11:34), and Katharina Steinruck (37th, 1:12:48) rounded out the results.
