Dorcus Chepkwemoi Ndiema in Eldoret
Dorcus Chepkwemoi and Aaron Las Heras will start as the athletes to beat at the Cross Internacional de Venta de Banos, the 10th Gold leg of this season’s World Athletics Cross Country Tour, on Sunday (21).
Eighteen-year-old Kenyan Chepkwemoi enters the race fresh from a convincing victory at the Cross Country Tour Gold meeting in Eldoret two weeks ago, while 25-year-old Spaniard Las Heras arrives after securing a top-10 finish at the recent European Cross Country Championships in Lagoa.
Chepkwemoi may still be regarded as something of an unheralded performer, having clocked a modest-looking 15:41.57 for 5000m last summer in Kampala, but her emphatic 24-second win over fellow Kenyan Brenda Jepchirchir — who recently ran 30:05 for 10km in Lille — has propelled the teenager into the role of hot favourite for Sunday’s 9.3km contest.
The Kenyan will face strong opposition from several leading Spanish specialists, including María Forero, Angela Viciosa, Carla Gallardo and Isabel Barreiro. Forero arrives as the newly crowned European U23 cross-country champion; the 22-year-old capped an outstanding 2025 campaign in Lagoa, having already claimed the European U23 5000m title in Bergen in July, one month after setting a lifetime best of 15:03.88 in Vienna. She led the Spanish U23 team to bronze, while Viciosa finished 18th in her first senior international appearance, some 26 seconds ahead of Spanish 10km record-holder Gallardo (31:11). Gallardo finished third here last season, just ahead of Viciosa.
Forero and Viciosa were named earlier this week in the Spanish team for the World Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee on 10 January. Barreiro, meanwhile, will be looking to bounce back from a below-par performance in Lagoa, where she placed 51st after having been the second-best Spaniard at both Italica and Atapuerca. Portugal’s Ana Marinho and Beatriz Rios will also be in contention.
The men’s race, also over 9.3km, promises to be a closely fought duel between Aaron Las Heras and Nassim Hassaous. Las Heras will be seeking revenge after finishing runner-up to Hassaous here last year. The Spaniard has enjoyed a consistent cross country campaign, finishing sixth in Seville before placing ninth at the European Cross Country Championships in Lagoa. The 2019 European U20 5000m champion continues to build steadily across disciplines.
Hassaous, meanwhile, made an eye-catching marathon debut just two weeks ago in Valencia, clocking 2:08:44. The 31-year-old defending champion rested for a week after that outing and has since resumed training, aiming to secure back-to-back victories in Venta de Banos.
The international challenge will also feature Morocco’s Abderraahmane Aferdi, Kenya’s Brian Kiptoo and Burundi’s Eric Nzambimana. The Spanish contingent includes national champion Yahya Aouina, as well as Ruben Leonardo – fourth in the steeplechase at this year’s European U23 Championships – and Mesfin Escamilla, both members of the Spanish U23 team that earned bronze in Lagoa.
Despite having just 6,500 inhabitants, the small village of Venta de Banos has hosted this high-quality cross country meeting since 1980. Notable past winners include Ethiopians Kenenisa Bekele, Letesenbet Gidey and Selemon Barega.
Weather forecasts point to a cold and rainy day, with temperatures expected to range between 2-4C at race time.
Emeterio Valiente for World Athletics
