“I was feeling so comfortable until 10K, after that I had a little stitch and I’m so glad to finish,” Gidey told Athletics Weekly. “I tried my best, I gave everything I had.” The first edition of the championships proved a big success on the roads around Leuven, with large crowds in the closing kilometres and calm, sunny conditions. But Gidey was left with a wealth of what-ifs after a wildly ambitious opening 5km that likely cost him a medal. Gressier, the pre-race favourite, blasted the opening 5km in 13:52, which is 58:30 pace, and Gidey and Kibrab both went with him. Gidey had set the Irish half marathon record at 1:00:51 in Copenhagen last year and had been in fantastic form in 2025, breaking the Irish 10km record on the road with 27:43 in Valencia in January and smashing the 10,000m national record on the track in California last month, clocking 27:26.95. He began to fall off the leading duo approaching 5km, which he passed in 13:54, and Gidey steadied his pace in the next section, passing 10km in 28:17. At that point he had a 21-second advantage over the chasing Gondouin, who’d run a much more even pace, and Gidey’s early effort soon began to tell as he clocked 14:59 for his third 5km section. Gondouin reeled him in with a few kilometres to run and quickly tried to surge clear, but Gidey fought back and tracked the Frenchman, with a game of cat and mouse unfolding as they gathered themselves for the sprint finish. But in the end, Gondouin had too much firepower for Gidey, with the 24-second difference in their opening 5km splits likely proving decisive when it came to the final shootout. Still, it was Gidey’s best performance at a senior championship, surpassing his sixth-place finish over 10,000m at the European Championships in Munich in 2022. “It’s good: fourth place, I’m so happy,” said Gidey. “I had a good season this year, I’ve been working so hard. Next time I’ll be back, very strong, and with a personal best time. I need to focus on (breaking) 27 minutes (for 10,000m) now for the Olympics.” Ann-Marie McGlynn was Ireland’s sole representative in the women’s half marathon, the Offaly native coming home 26th in 1:15:53, with gold going to Belgium’s Chloe Herbiet in 1:10:43. The championships continue on Sunday, with Sean Tobin, Hiko Tonosa and Cormac Dalton in the men’s 10km and Niamh Allen and Emily Haggard Kearney in the women’s event. Both races begin at 8.30am Irish time, with live coverage on Eurovisionsport.com.