Newcomer to the distance, Alexis Miellet created a sensation by winning the European title in front of his compatriot in Rome on Monday evening.
The steeplechase festival. After the crazy evening on Sunday and the four medals for the French team in 45 minutes, including the incredible gold medal for Alice Finot in the 3,000 m steeplechase, Alexis Miellet and Djilali Bedrani gave it a boost on Monday by offering themselves a double in this same specialty at the European Athletics Championships in Rome.
Miellet (29 years old) and Bedrani (30 years old) each won their first international track medal and brought the French team its seventh and eighth medals in the European competition, less than two months before the Paris Olympic Games (July 26). -August 11). The French steeplechase returns to victory six years after Mahiedine Mekhissi’s last European coronation in 2018.
Better, by winning in 8:14.01 in front of his compatriot (8:14.36) and the German Karl Bebendorf (8:14.41), Alexis Miellet leads a double like France had not seen in steeplechase since the Mekhissi duo /Bob Tahri in Barcelona in 2010. For the neo-European champion, the story is hardly believable: the Dijon native, from 1,500 m and cross country, ran his very first 3,000 steeple last month. The two he competed on the blue track of the Roman Olympic stadium are only his fourth and fifth.
“We have worked”
Conversion to steeplechasing? “It’s an idea that I had two years ago when I saw that the 1,500 m was starting to get clogged (in terms of density)”he explained. “My father got me started last year by looking at the European reports and telling me that there was perhaps something to be done.”
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Even if he is discovering the specialty, Miellet has already achieved the Olympic minimums at the end of May in Marseille, in 8 min 14 sec 71. His personal best until the European final on Monday evening. “For my first race (beginning of May) I made the minimums for the Europe, my second race the minimums for the Games and there I am European champion… Frankly it’s incredible, if someone had told me that it would A year ago I would have signed straight away”exulted Miellet, blue-white-red flag around his neck.
Although he was crowned European cross-country mixed relay champion last winter, Miellet had not been selected for the French track team since the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 when he was eliminated in the series. 1,500 m.
Better than in Munich
Already a world finalist in 2019 (5th) and European finalist in 2022 (8th) in the 3,000 m steeplechase, Bedrani offers himself, like Miellet, his first international podium. “It’s my first international medal in 17 years of athletics, so it’s still a career achievement today”reacted Bedrani. “That’s not what we were aiming for but the gold stays at home, we do honor to the 3,000m steeplechase which is a private preserve in France.”
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The Toulouse man also ran the Olympic minimums, like a third Frenchman not selected for the European meeting, Louis Gilavert. Even if it is the European level and not the world level, the Blues of athletics are finding color in the Italian capital, in the final stretch before the Paris Olympics.
After the double of Miellet and Bedrani, the young Rose Loga brought the French team its ninth medal of these championships by winning bronze in the hammer thanks to a throw of 72.68 m, a personal best still far from the Olympic minimums (74.00 m) It was the Italian Sara Fantini who was crowned (74.18 m) ahead of the Polish Anita Wlodarczyk (72.92 m). “I didn’t think it was possible”exulted Loga. “My coach told me to dare to throw harder and it freed me. I’m coming home with this record and bronze, I’m so happy.”
