Three-peat for Soi in Bolzano

Bolzano, Italy - Bolzano celebrated the 35th edition of the Boclassic New Year’s Eve race with two fantastic competitions which lived up to the tradition of this popular Northern Italian race despite a very cold and rainy day. About 10,000 people turned up in the fascinating Waltherplatz to attend a great afternoon of athletics. 

Kenyan Edwin Soi, the Olympic bronze medallist in the 5000m in Beijing, scored a hat-trick by winning in Bolzano for the third consecutive year. Soi crossed the finish-line in 28:44 in the Waltherplatz Square holding off Imane Merga from Ethiopia by one second in the men’s 10 km race. Mo Farah from Great Britain, the European Indoor Champion in the 3000m, finished third four seconds behind Soi. Andrea Lalli, the 2008 European Cross Country Under 23 champion in Brussels and more recently winner on the same course in the Belgian capital two weeks ago on a snowy day, thrilled the Italian fans with a very good fifth place behind Kenyan Silan Kipruto, a promising runner with 7:32.25 and 13:02.86 PBs in the 3000m and 5000m respectively.