The metaphorical distance between Ponte Lambro and Tokyo was bridged by Iliass Aouani, who secured the bronze medal in the World Championships marathon. “This is the medal of the public housing projects; my father, who works on a construction site, will be proud,” declared the Italian long-distance runner after the race in Tokyo’s Olympic Stadium. He concluded with a final, albeit unsuccessful, sprint for gold but celebrated his bronze wrapped in the Italian tricolor.
Born in Morocco at the foot of the Middle Atlas mountains, Aouani moved to Italy with his family at the age of two. The eldest of five children and the only one not born in Italy, he stood with the national flag on his shoulders and a world bronze around his neck, declaring himself “proudly Italian.”
He began running at 15, a pursuit he says “saved” him in the southeastern Milan suburbs, an area long symbolic of urban hardship. The 42 kilometers run in Tokyo by its “adoptive son” have now become a source of immense pride. “This is the medal of the public housing projects,” was Aouani’s immediate dedication. He emigrated a second time at 18 to study in the US, where he earned a degree in engineering, but returns to Ponte Lambro to his family whenever he is back in Italy.
The 30-year-old’s bronze is Italy’s fourth podium finish at the Tokyo Worlds, following silvers for Palmisano and Battocletti and a bronze for Fabbri. It marks Italy’s return to the World Championships marathon podium 22 years after Baldini’s win in Paris. This crowns a fantastic season for the Milanese athlete, the reigning European champion who triumphed at the first European Road Running Championships in Leuven, Belgium, last April.
The race was won by Tanzania’s Alphonce Simbu in a breathtaking sprint finish, overtaking Germany’s Amanal Petros, who had been leading upon entering the stadium. Both were clocked at 2:09:48, with Aouani finishing just behind in 2:09:53.
In a tactical race, Aouani ran with lucidity to manage the challenges of the humid Japanese morning and his opponents. He initially stayed with a large lead pack of 15 athletes at the 35km mark, which gradually thinned. The 29-year-old from the Fiamme Azzurre team, wearing a black bandana under a white cap, began moving into top positions when Uganda’s Abel Chelangat led. A thrilling finale saw five athletes vie for the title in the last kilometer.
“These are the moments you dream of your entire life,” an emotional Aouani recounted. “I was crazy enough to dream big. This medal makes me proud but does not satisfy my hunger.” He directly addressed his identity, stating, “It doesn’t matter if someone, because of my name, says I am a ‘borrowed’ Moroccan. I feel proudly Italian and say thank you to Italy, my country, which has given me so much.”
He described overcoming internal doubts during the race: “Around the 15th kilometer, voices from my darker side surfaced, wanting me to give up, but I silenced them immediately.” He even lost one of his contact lenses mid-race but persevered. “I entered the stadium, and it was beautiful. I was aiming for gold, but the others were better than me.”
Calling himself resilient rather than special, Aouani spoke of past disappointments, including not being called up for the Olympics last year and recent injuries. “This bronze comes from nothing, from the public housing of Ponte Lambro,” he said. “I hope my story inspires everyone: when you believe enough, dreams can come true. My father is about to go to work on the construction site and will be proud of me. This medal has everything: moments of disappointment where I wanted to quit, tears shed alone in my car. But I made it.”