The main races on the Bretillian calendar no longer hold any secrets for Hamza El Ouardi. But the 35-year-old Rennes athlete no longer represents any surprise for his opponents either, with his very particular style and his running patterns made of spurts and restarts. Thus, when Alexis Gueroc (joined him at 15e km, the latter must have suspected that the three-time winner of the Tout Rennes court half-marathon (2017, 2019, 2023) still had something under the hood.
But El Ouardi assures that he had a little doubt against the 16the (and first Breton) of the French short cross championships last March, therefore obviously equipped with a formidable burst of speed. “At one point, I told myself that if we stayed like that, he would go ahead”testifies the Rennais, who took advantage of the false descending flat after the Thabor to make the difference. Knowledge of the field has spoken, once again.
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El Ouardi outsider on the Green Marathon?
Never far from winning the Tout Rennes court and now a four-time winner of the semi, El Ouardi will also have arguments to put forward in two weeks in the Rennes Green Marathon, with his recent progress over the distance (2 h 17’48” in December 2023). “I would love to beat my record. It’s the time that interests me. There will be a level, Florian Caro (Brest)Maël Sicot (Auray)several athletes who come from elsewhere in France. »
The marathon, Anaïs Chevrier, is not there yet. Although after this more than successful discovery of the semi, the Vendée should quickly reconsider the question. If El Ouardi’s success among the men was expected, Anaïs Chevrier was not even listed among the favorites in the women’s semi, even though she is already, at 23, a well-known (and feared) name in cross-country. country in the Great West. To the great dismay of locals Laure Bertrand (EAPB) and Fanny Malagré (Pacé en cours) who completed the podium.
“I even left in the 2e sas, smiles the EMS Challans licensee. I wanted to increase the distance a little this year, I knew it could suit me. I’m super happy with the time, I just wanted to go under 1h20′. » Objective fulfilled with almost two minutes in advance (1h 18’02”), a time and ease on a course not conducive to records which can therefore suggest a bright future in the marathon. “This will surely be the next step in a few years. »
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