Polish hammer great Anita Wlodarczyk (© Getty Images)
Five-time winner Anita Wlodarczyk will return to the Istvan Gyulai Memorial, a World Athletics Continental Tour Gold meeting, in Szekesfehervar on 6 July.
Poland’s two-time Olympic and four-time world hammer champion was dominant in Szekesfehervar between 2014 and 2018, before injury forced her to end her 2019 season early. The world record-holder then missed 2020 and is making a comeback this year as she targets the defence of her Olympic title in Tokyo.
Wlodarczyk is among a number of global medallists heading to Hungary, with her compatriot Piotr Malachowski – the 2015 world discus champion and two-time Olympic silver medallist – also among the athletes recently announced for the event.
They will be joined by two-time world champion Dafne Schippers of the Netherlands (200m), the USA’s Olympic bronze medallists Ashley Spencer (400m hurdles) and Clayton Murphy (800m), Canada’s Olympic and world 4x100m medallist Aaron Brown (200m), the USA’s world 4x400m champion Wadeline Jonathas (400m), Jamaica’s Olympic and world 4x400m medallist Stephenie Ann McPherson (400m) and the USA’s world 4x100m champion Mike Rodgers (100m).
Australia’s Commonwealth champion Brandon Starc and Ukraine’s 2014 world indoor medallist Andriy Protsenko have been announced for the high jump, while Poland’s multiple world 4x400m medallist Justyna Swiety-Ersetic will race the 400m and her compatriot Wojciech Nowicki – the multiple Olympic and world medallist – contests the hammer.
Azerbaijan’s 2019 European indoor champion Nazim Babayev contests the triple jump, Estonia’s 2014 European silver medallist Rasmus Magi is set for the 400m hurdles and the Netherlands’ two-time European indoor champion Nadine Visser will race the 100m hurdles.
Hungarian 800m champion Balazs Vindics, long jumper Diana Lesti and hammer thrower Daniel Raba will be among the athletes competing on home soil.
Among those previously announced for the meeting are 2017 world discus champion Andrius Gudzius, world 200m bronze medallist Mujinga Kambundji and 2007 world high jump champion Donald Thomas.
