Moroccan athletes Soufiane El Bakkali and Salaheddine Ben Yazid will compete in the Diamond League 3,000m steeplechase final on Saturday at King Baudouin Stadium in Brussels, with both targeting a place on the podium.
El Bakkali, a two-time Olympic and world champion, will be among the main contenders for the title. He has the fastest time of the season, 7:57.25, set on May 31 at the Rabat meeting, and leads the Diamond League qualifying standings with 31 points.
The Moroccan, whose personal best is 7:56.68, won three of the four 3,000m steeplechase races he contested in the Diamond League this year before finishing second on August 23 in Silesia, Poland.
Soufiane El Bakkali. AFP or licensors. أ.ف.ب
Ben Yazid heads into the Brussels final after winning gold at the 2026 Mediterranean Games in Taranto. The 23-year-old Moroccan athlete won the 3,000m steeplechase title last Wednesday in 8:46.14.
He has 14 points in the Diamond League qualifying standings and is sixth heading into the final. His personal best, which is also his best time of the season, is 8:05.08, set at the most recent meeting in Silesia, where he finished third.
The Moroccan duo will face, among others, Kenyans Simon Koech, who has run 7:59.44, and Edmund Serem, who has a time of 8:01.61, as well as Ethiopians Samuel Firewu, who has run 8:06.65 this season, and Gemechu Godana, with 8:02.74.
