Norway took almost everything possible at the Nordic Cross Country Championships on home soil in Trondheim on Sunday.
The only non Norwegian champion was Finland’s Saara Nikander in the women’s junior division.
In the senior men’s 9km, three runners fought hard in the home straight and the jury was forced to look at the photo finish to find out the gold medallist. Hillary Kipchumba was the first on the line, but does not have the right to represent Norway, although he lives there.
Anyway, Kipcumba clocked the same time as Norway’s Sondre Nordstad Moen, who thus became the Nordic champion. Only one second behind him was his compatriot, Ethiopian-born Dabaya Badhaso who took the silver medal.
Sweden’s world class steeplechaser Mustafa Mohamed was third but was 24 seconds behind Moen.
In the men junior 6km race, Norway also took a double as Johan Bugge was less than one metre stronger in the final spurt than Örjan Rönnevik. Sweden´s 16-year-old Napoleon Solomon was the only one to follow them and became the bronze medallist, one second behind.
The weather in Trondheim, Central Norway, was quite good; only some light rain in the beginning of the day. When the Sun began to shine, the temperature rose quickly to +4 to 5 C which caused the ice to melt on the course, which caused troubles for the heavier male runners.
Norway’s Kirsten Marathon Melkevik (40 years) tried to escape from her compatriot Karoline Bjerkeli Grövdal in the senior women’s 7.5km, but Grövdal had no difficulties to secure the victory in the last kilometre.
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