Nadia Battocletti finished 2023 with a victory at the 5km in Bolzano

The Italian athlete Nadia Battocletti finished 2023 with a victory at the 5km in Bolzano on Sunday. She won the famous race on New Year’s Eve with a time of 15:30 min, making the 23-year-old the first Italian to win the event since 1988.

Nadia Battocletti beat out two Kenyans for this accolade. World 1,500m finalist Nelly Chepchirchir finished second in 15:33 min and two-time world medalist Margaret Kipkemboi third in 15:50 min.

Nadia Battocletti proved herself on all surfaces last year, but her focus remains on the track with the European Athletics Championships in Rome and the Paris 2024 Olympics.

“I was confident because the last practices went very well and I could feel the applause of the spectators as the laps went by. But when my mother shouted to encourage me, as only she can do, with 600 meters to go, I told myself now is the time to push”, said Nadia Battocletti.

On his plans for 2024, Batokletti said: “For the new year, the idea of running 1,500 meters at the Paris Olympics is taking shape, but I don’t want to abandon the 5,000m”.