Hassan Chahdi and Florian Carvalho didn’t disappoint the many pundits who were predicting their success at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Albufeira, Portugal, on Sunday.
They delivered handsomely on their promise by finishing first and second in the men’s under 23 race and the sight of French runners standing on the top two places on the podium was a repeat of 12 months ago when Chahdi had to settle for silver, on that occasion behind his triumphant compatriot Noureddine Smaí¯l, with the 2008 junior men’s champion Carvalho not far back in fourth place.
Talking to the French federation website www.athle.com, Chahdi and Carvalho reflected on the race.
'I stayed well back initially, to see how things went, because I saw that there were still a lot of people in the main pack, I just wanted to settle into the race. At one point, Florian attacked but being a little naughty, I knew that this time the title was mine. I had my heart set on it after getting second place last year. I am happy to have actually won after so many years of just getting on the podium,” said Chahdi, who was also the bronze medallist as a junior two years ago.
“I did not expect to see the Russian on the podium,” he added, acknowledging the unexpected challenge of bronze medallist Yegor Nikolayev until the final 500m.
Pictures of Chahdi seemingly strumming a guitar as he crossed the line also made it into many French newspapers on Monday.
“I wasn’t planning to finish like that, but I don’t think it was so ridiculous. The gesture of me playing a guitar while crossing the finish line was for a bet with a friend, who now owes me a song!”
Inevitably, as he is still only 21, Chahdi been installed as the long-distance favourite to defend his title at the 2011 SPAR European Cross Country Championships, which will be in Velenje, Slovenia on December 11 next year.
Carvalho finished three second behind his team mate and is young enough to try to turn the tables on his team mate as, like Chahdi, he also has another year in the category.
'I'm satisfied. You cannot be too disappointed when you're a medallist. Before the start, I said to Hassan: ‘One of us is going to get the gold’. However, I was in agony throughout the last loop. I kept saying to myself ‘grit your teeth’. I was doing that for more than 1500 metres. I tried my luck in the last coming into the last of the (artificial) hills but it was not enough. Hassan overtook me five or six metres after that and I just finished as well as I could. I am relatively satisfied. I have always finished on the podium of European Cross Country Championships, apart last year. I'm also happy for Hassan and for the whole team,” said Carvalho, who picked up a second silver medal when France finished as the runners up in the team standings behind Ireland.