03:28Moroccan athlete Soufiane El Bakkali arrived at the Rabat-Sale international airport on Sunday after winning men's 3000m steeplechase gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
El Bakkali, who gave his country its only medal at the Tokyo Games and its first gold medal since 2004, was welcomed by cheerful supporters.
“We came to the airport to receive the Moroccan champion who has honoured his country and national flag. We haven’t been able to win the gold since 2004 and I hope he surpasses other former Moroccan champions, especially since he is still young. I do wish him good luck indeed”, a fan said.
El Bakkali managed to finish the semi-final race while leading the qualifiers at 8:19:00, to qualify for the final race which included 15 competitors.
At the final, the 25-year-old runner led the race and finished first at 8:09:83 minutes, nearly two seconds ahead of his closest rivals Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia and Benjamin Kivin of Kenya.
Morocco: Olympic runner El Bakkali receives warm welcome at home after winning gold
Moroccan athlete Soufiane El Bakkali arrived at the Rabat-Sale international airport on Sunday after winning men's 3000m steeplechase gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
El Bakkali, who gave his country its only medal at the Tokyo Games and its first gold medal since 2004, was welcomed by cheerful supporters.
“We came to the airport to receive the Moroccan champion who has honoured his country and national flag. We haven’t been able to win the gold since 2004 and I hope he surpasses other former Moroccan champions, especially since he is still young. I do wish him good luck indeed”, a fan said.
El Bakkali managed to finish the semi-final race while leading the qualifiers at 8:19:00, to qualify for the final race which included 15 competitors.
At the final, the 25-year-old runner led the race and finished first at 8:09:83 minutes, nearly two seconds ahead of his closest rivals Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia and Benjamin Kivin of Kenya.
Moroccan athlete Soufiane El Bakkali arrived at the Rabat-Sale international airport on Sunday after winning men's 3000m steeplechase gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
El Bakkali, who gave his country its only medal at the Tokyo Games and its first gold medal since 2004, was welcomed by cheerful supporters.
“We came to the airport to receive the Moroccan champion who has honoured his country and national flag. We haven’t been able to win the gold since 2004 and I hope he surpasses other former Moroccan champions, especially since he is still young. I do wish him good luck indeed”, a fan said.
El Bakkali managed to finish the semi-final race while leading the qualifiers at 8:19:00, to qualify for the final race which included 15 competitors.
At the final, the 25-year-old runner led the race and finished first at 8:09:83 minutes, nearly two seconds ahead of his closest rivals Lamecha Girma of Ethiopia and Benjamin Kivin of Kenya.