The future is so bright for Zhang Jun that he was the only race walker in the first three at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 who needed sunglasses.
However, the Chinese athlete was cast into bright sunlight as he strode home to underline his status as the pre-race favourite.
Behind him, there was a terrific scramble to mount the podium won by Manuel Bermudez from Spain to set a four-second personal best, and Mexico&rsquo;s Noel Chama came third after a charge in the latter stages to pip Callum Wilkinson from Great Britain.
There was no hanging about from Wilkinson as he shot away at the start.
The fair-haired white-vested native from Newmarket is fresh from a 41:31 personal best recorded in March, and looked a thoroughbred as he rattled through the first four kilometres.
Zhang has gone even faster, and it was mere seconds before he made up the ground to Wilkinson. At 4km, he made his own push to be home alone.
The Brit was joined by Cesar Rodriguez from Peru, the only top-10 survivor from the 2014 IAAF World Junior Championships, China&rsquo;s Jin Xiangqian, Rodriguez&rsquo;s teammate Lenyn Mamani, Spain&rsquo;s Bermudez and Japan&rsquo;s Masatora Kawano to enhance the eclectic mix.
Halfway was reached by Zhang in a speedy 20:22, with the others a mere two seconds back.
By 6km there was clear daylight between the chasers and the leading pack now down to Chama, Zhang, Wilkinson, and Bermudez.
Behind the quartet, the Peruvian pair were desperately trying to stay in touch, desperate being the operative word as the leaders hit 32:58 for 8km.
Shortly after, Wilkinson was next to feel the heat, and not just the Roman rising sun, but the injection of pace from Zhang as he made five metres on Bermudez, who in turn carved out the same, despite a great walk from the Great Briton.
Wilkinson dug deep to close the gap, and lost it in the next 100 metres, with the Spaniard storming after the Chinese leader.
The short but quick striding Zhang ate up the ground over the last kilometre to make certain of his win, and Bermudez also had a bit of daylight to spare to win silver.
However, a magnificent last 150 metres between the tiring Wilkinson and Chama, who clearly got a second wind in the second half of the race, excited the throng at the finishing line.
The two were as far opposite as possible on the track heading to the line, but it was the Mexican who prevailed. Wilkinson&rsquo;s razor sharp race walk was rewarded with another personal best, this time in 40:30 to take more than a minute off his own national junior record. His fourth-place finish was the highest position achieved by a Briton in any race at these championships since 1979.
The winner, however, claimed he was far from certain about gold on the start line.
&ldquo;At the beginning I felt my condition was not so good,&rdquo; said Zhang, the world youth silver medallist. &ldquo;It must be the weather; it was a bit too hot. In the last six kilometres I felt my energy would not be enough. I tried to adjust and then I perked up.&rdquo;
Bermudez felt the warmth of the sun and a family gathered to cheer him on.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m very satisfied,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;I gave it my all because the race was difficult, it was really hot. My family is here and I feel supported. Before we started, I was hoping for a fast race like it has been in the past, but I didn't think I would be on the podium.&rdquo;
Chama enjoyed the benefit of bronze and qualification for the IAAF World U20 Championships Bydgoszcz 2016 in July.
&ldquo;It was a tough race &ndash; and I knew it would be, because it was my first season as an U20,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great moment for me as I made the qualification standards to compete in Bydgoszcz. Hopefully, I will have the opportunity to compete with the senior national team in just a few years.&rdquo;
Mexico were team champions, and newcomers Peru earned a magnificent team silver, with the improving Japanese taking the final medal.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

The future is so bright for Zhang Jun that he was the only race walker in the first three at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 who needed sunglasses.

Report: U20 men’s 10km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

The U20 women&rsquo;s 10km at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 proved to be a cracking race with a real burn-up over the last 300 metres between the two leading Chinese race walkers.
As Ma Zhenxia and Ma Li shot through the finish line there was no impression of a conveniently agreed and possibly diplomatic tie. Both clearly wanted the victory, and it needed a photo finish to separate them by an amazing six-thousandths of a second &ndash; the first time any race at any World Cup has seen leading race walkers finish on the same second.
There was a brave bronze for Mexico&rsquo;s Valeria Ortuno three seconds later, not only rewarded with a medal for refusing to yield when the pace ratcheted up, but a personal best by 15 seconds and an area U20 record on a day when new marks were few and far between.
Earlier, everyone toed the line in the shadow of the Constantine Arch and strode out down the Via di San Gregorio like Roman troops 2000 years ago &ndash; except these junior women were going a fair bit quicker.
Even so, a clutch of race walkers appeared to belie their personal bests to head to the front of the field including Finland&rsquo;s Taika Nummi alongside Tayla-Paige Billington wearing the green and gold of Australia.
Right behind, Ma Li and Italy&rsquo;s Noemi Stella were putting on a show for home fans, but the pace was still a modest 14:03 going through 3km.
Shortly after, the cap-wearing Ma Zhenxia came level at the front for the first time and the leading group of 18 started to splinter with remnants flying off the back.
Germany&rsquo;s Teresa Zurek was next to chance her arm at the front, and the sudden injection of pace reduced the phalanx to nine.
It was no wonder. The pace had shot up to 23:12 for halfway with Ortuno also making her first bid for glory.
By 6km the charge had reduced the numbers to six with Australia&rsquo;s Zoe Hunt having the race of her life just about hanging on to the leaders&rsquo; coat tails, but also labouring under the threat of two disqualification cards that soon turned into all three.
Just before 9km, there was an almighty sprint from Ma Zhenxia, who lit the afterburners of a 44:29 personal best from March.
She looked a comfortable first, but was soon looking over shoulder as her teammate and Ortuno gave chase.
Ma Zhenxia, the world youth champion, gave it a second burst to lose her pursuers, and still they came back at her.
Going on to the track, there was at last daylight between China and Mexico, but at the finish line, only technology made the division.
Back in the day of the naked eye, a recorder would surely have made it a tie.
Stella came home a good fourth, and Nummi looked delighted with fifth.
Needless to say, China took the team prize, Mexico were second, and Australia third.
At least three race walkers were given a two-minute pit stop in a bold experiment designed to spare athletes the ignominy of total disqualification.
Once a third card came in, as it did for Hunt, they were shepherded into the sidings and set back on their way after two minutes.
As an idea it has legs, and allowed the fallen to put theirs back into action and complete the race.
The winner has a thicker vest than the difference between she and second, but a win is still a win.
"It feels pretty good to win after very hard training," Zhenxia said. "The beginning of the course is difficult but the rest of it was very good "I won today thanks to my relaxed attitude, and because there was a strong field."
The second Ma was in doubt about the winner until technology made the difference.
Li explained: "We did not know who had won, and we had not planned to finish together." And although it was only fourth for Stella, it was as good as gold.
"I felt like I won," the Italian said. "I had two terrible months because of a back injury. As a result, I did not expect to finish fourth, but I just gritted my teeth throughout and just kept my rhythm."
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

The U20 women’s 10km at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 proved to be a cracking race with a real burn-up over the last 300 metres between the two leading Chinese race walkers.

Report: U20 women’s 10km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

On the eve of the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016, three of the world&rsquo;s top race walkers spoke at the IAAF/LOC press conference in the sunny Loggia Garden at the Sheraton Parco de Medici in the Italian capital on Friday (6).
China&rsquo;s world 20km race walk champion and world record-holder Liu Hong, Italian 20km race walk record-holder Eleonora Giorgi and Canada&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Ben Thorne were joined by IAAF General Secretary Jean Gracia, LOC President Alfio Giomi and race walking legends and IAAF Ambassadors Jefferson Perez and Robert Korzeniowski.
IAAF General Secretary Jean Gracia was delighted with the local organising committee&rsquo;s efforts in staging a world-class event at short notice.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a great pleasure to welcome everyone to Rome,&rdquo; said Gracia. &ldquo;On behalf of the IAAF, I&rsquo;d like to say a big thank you to the Italian federation. They were given the pleasure of hosting the competition just four months ago; it was a big challenge, but they took it.
&ldquo;This is the 27th edition of this event,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;It started in 1961 with the Lugano Trophy, then became the World Cup and now this is the first edition of it being called the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships. Instead of a cup or trophy, medals will be awarded to the top individuals and teams.
&ldquo;Since it began in 1961, Italy is the only country to have participated in all editions of this event. This will also be the fourth time that Italy has hosted it.&rdquo;
LOC President Alfio Giomi outlined the reasons why Italy was keen to stage the event.
&ldquo;For us, race walking is like a religion; it&rsquo;s our symbol of athletics,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We have so many world and Olympic champions in this discipline. This event will be a celebration of Italy&rsquo;s long-standing tradition in race walking.
&ldquo;We also wanted to provide a unique atmosphere for the athletes,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a complex event and Rome is a complex city, but the city will come to a stand-still on Saturday and Sunday for this event. Athletes will start at the Arch of Constantine near the Colosseum and will be racing past the Terme di Caracalla.
&ldquo;But the other reason we were keen to host this event is because we wanted to pay tribute to Annarita Sidoti,&rdquo; added Giomi of the 1997 world champion who died of breast cancer last year at the age of 45. &ldquo;I&rsquo;d like to thank the IAAF for giving us the opportunity of dedicating this competition to her.&rdquo;
Liu Hong believes she is home from home when she steps out on the streets of Rome.
The 28-year-old and a number of her teammates have been under the tutelage of Italian maestro Sandro Damilano since 2010 and use training camps at Saluzzo south of Turin.
Liu insists the Chinese restaurants and supermarkets are just part of the reason there is already a strong link with tomorrow&rsquo;s hosts.
&ldquo;Saluzzo is a great place, and other athletes like Jefferson Perez have also used it in the past,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;The people are friendly and walks through the orchards make it all the more pleasant.&rdquo;
However, Liu is not expecting to go as fast as she did last year when she broke the world record in La Coruna.
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s not very easy to walk under 1:25:00, and I had a little cold before Rome,&rdquo; she said. &ldquo;My condition is not as good as it was last year. I don&rsquo;t know how fast I can walk, but I will do my best.&rdquo;
Liu also revealed that, given her experience, she is now seen as the &lsquo;auntie&rsquo; or &lsquo;elder sister&rsquo; to her younger teammates. There was a clear example of this when she advised Lu Xiuzhi coming into the Bird&rsquo;s Nest stadium last August with both holding first and second places.
&ldquo;We were concerned about technique and what the judges might do,&rdquo; she explained. &ldquo;I am the oldest athlete, and I hope I can help so that we can work together as a team.&rdquo;
Ben Thorne also earned a medal in Beijing, scoring a breakthrough bronze at 20km. The Canadian told the assembled audience at the press conference that talking during races is not for him.
&ldquo;If I&rsquo;m talking, it&rsquo;s because I&rsquo;m probably not working hard enough," he said. &ldquo;But in Australia at a race, I was feeling good once and I started singing; it annoyed the others &ndash; and I can see why.&rdquo;
Thorne suggested the Canadian team that includes Inaki Gomez and Evan Dunfee are in the kind of shape to make the podium in the team contest.
&ldquo;Our big breakthrough was two years ago in Taicang when we were fourth and one point behind Japan,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;The three of us are in good health and have a good chance, but we don&rsquo;t want to seem presumptuous.&rdquo;
Thorne has quit university studies to dedicate his life to race walking and admits he is already feeling the benefit.
&ldquo;I went home to Vancouver after Beijing and went back to school, but two weeks into the semester, I thought I&rsquo;d rather be race walking than studying. I dropped out of school and went to Australia for four months with the team, and then altitude training in Flagstaff, so it&rsquo;s the first year without studying and I hope it reflects in my training.&rdquo;
Eleonora Giorgi, the Italian home favourite, is one race walker who won&rsquo;t lack support on the course tomorrow.
Her family &ndash; including aunts, uncles, cousins and her own athletics club supporters &ndash; will have banners and whistles to offer encouragement all the way round the 20km course.
Despite the Giorgi clan and clamour, the focus of their attention says she only has eyes on the prize.
&ldquo;I will undoubtedly hear them, but I am focused,&rdquo; she said.
&ldquo;Italy has a great tradition; it&rsquo;s going to be exciting, and the team is ready to compete, but (2010 World Cup junior winner Antonella) Palmisano is not with us, or we would have been one of the teams to beat.&rdquo;
IAAF Ambassador Jefferson Perez is not only one of the greatest race walkers of all time, but he is also one of the most successful athletes in the history of the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships.
The Ecuadorian, who became the Olympic champion in 1996, won the 20km on three occasions, in between winning his three world titles at the distance.
&ldquo;This sport is special,&rdquo; said the 41-year-old, who retired in 2008. &ldquo;You confront your rivals on the start line, but when you finish the race, everyone is friends.
&ldquo;The athletes here train very hard to win medals and honours for their countries. But friendships last forever, not just for one championship. That&rsquo;s the true gold medal.
&ldquo;Sport is a life-long investment,&rdquo; he added. &ldquo;Through this activity, you can learn about honesty, courage, respect, everything. Those things will help you for the rest of your life.&rdquo;
IAAF Ambassador Robert Korzeniowski agreed with Perez&rsquo;s sentiments.
&ldquo;Twenty years after we first competed against each other at the Atlanta Olympics, we&rsquo;re sitting here together and are still friends,&rdquo; said the four-time Olympic champion. &ldquo;The main message I&rsquo;d like to send to the next generation is: compete and respect others as you respect yourself.
&ldquo;Our races were always highly competitive, but we also knew how to establish a special link of friendship and respect, both in and out of competition. Race walking, and sport in general, is the best life university.&rdquo;
Paul Warburton and Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF

On the eve of the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016, three of the world’s top race walkers spoke at the IAAF/LOC press conference in the sunny Loggia Garden at the Sheraton Parco de Medici in the Italian capital on Friday (6).

Press conference highlights – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

The IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 gets under way in the Italian capital on Saturday (7), and you can follow all of the action via the IAAF website.
<h3>Live action</h3>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships-5658/timetable" target="_blank">Live results</a>
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<h3>Coverage</h3>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships-5658/news/preview" target="_blank">Event-by-event previews</a>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships-5658/news/report" target="_blank">Event-by-event reports</a>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships-5658/news/feature" target="_blank">Athlete features</a>
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<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships-5658/athletes" target="_blank">Athletes</a>
<h3>Stats</h3>
Official start lists: <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/ba9772e3-3ad9-4c0d-8988-a0e6c3cc7ea4.pdf" target="_blank">U20 women's 10km</a>, <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/8fa2d2ef-adaf-47b0-a503-3c642d2f4dcf.pdf" target="_blank">U20 men's 10km</a>, <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/e9a2b8f3-4b67-4aa3-9cb5-847940fbf4a2.pdf" target="_blank">women's 20km</a>, <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/6a61285b-822a-4a30-b29b-ade16d61bd67.pdf" target="_blank">men's 20km</a>, <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/c5f9eb57-8b28-40d5-b497-2fa48e47d83a.pdf" target="_blank">50km</a>.
Detailed biographies: <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/681a69cc-79e9-4747-ab9d-9a5a1cd5b439.pdf" target="_blank">men</a> and <a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/82ba295b-7752-4a87-bf92-92b813e42dfc.pdf" target="_blank">women</a>
<a href="http://media.aws.iaaf.org/competitioninfo/a8122872-03aa-4647-9a6f-951efdda6c6d.pdf" target="_blank">IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships statistics handbook</a>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships/history" target="_blank">Past results</a>
<a href="http://www.iaaf.org/records/toplists/racewalks/20-kilometres-race-walk/outdoor/men/senior/2016" target="_blank">World lists</a>

The IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 gets under way in the Italian capital on Saturday (7), and you can follow all of the action via the IAAF website.

Follow all the action at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

All roads not only lead to Rome for 20km race walkers at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016; there is one thoroughfare about to see an epic battle against the backdrop of the ancient Colosseum on the lip of the course.
The good news for spectators is that the race-walking gladiators are pretty evenly matched.
Individually, there are at least six or more who could break the tape. On a team level, Japan, China and Canada have terrific units in great form and at least one of those countries should make it on to the podium.
Spain and defending champions Ukraine plot to upset the party, however.
Two-time world silver medallist Wang Zhen has the fastest PB of all the entrants, and the Asian Games champion has more than enough pedigree to repeat his 2012 World Cup win in Saransk &ndash; especially after a 1:19:12 victory in China&rsquo;s Olympic trial race.
Olympic champion Chen Ding and 2014 World Cup silver medallist Cai Zelin will also be in Rome, but the top three race walkers on the 2016 world list all come from Japan and two of those will be racing in the Italian capital.
Even without injured world record-holder Yusuke Suzuki, the Japanese trio of Eiki Takahashi, Isamu Fujisawa and Takumi Saito should skate home, assuming the usual caveat of satisfying watching judges.
Takahashi clocked a world-leading 1:18:26 to win the national title in February with Fujisawa placing second in 1:18:45. Saito, meanwhile, clocked a PB of 1:19:44 to finish third in a competitive race in Nomi in March.
Canada, with world bronze medallist Ben Thorne, national record-holder Inaki Gomez and Pan-American champion Evan Dunfee, also look strong as a unit and could even challenge for individual honours.
That same trio finished fourth in the team standings in 2014, just one point away from a place on the podium, and will be using the memories of that experience as motivation in Rome.
World champion Miguel Angel Lopez does what a winner does: peaks for top races and holds his nerve to the tape.
Alongside him on the Spanish team should be European under-23 silver medallist Alvaro Martin, winner of the IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting in Rio Maior last month.
Ukraine were surprise team winners in Taicang two years ago, and in Ruslan Dmytrenko they also had the individual winner. His 1:21:31 at Ivano-Frankivsk in March was nothing special in world terms, but it was still a win, and the Ukrainians have got the taste for medals.
Individually, it&rsquo;s not always the fastest on paper who wins this race. Dmytrenko was one of a number of promising race walkers in 2014 when the hosts were the favourites, but he still got home first with a last-lap sprint.
Andres Choco was third in Rio Maior, but he also broke the South American 50km record in Ciudad Juarez in early March to suggest he has not only strength in spades, but is clearly Ecuador&rsquo;s natural successor to the great Jefferson Perez.
Australia&rsquo;s Dane Bird-Smith has made steady but sure progress among the elite. The 23-year-old&rsquo;s 1:20:04 victory to start the 2016 Race Walking Challenge in Adelaide in February was a personal best by one second and, more importantly, was achieved in searing heat.
Weather forecasts suggest the Italian capital could boast north of 25C by the time of Saturday&rsquo;s afternoon start that should play in favour of those used to warm conditions.
Other outsiders for individual glory will include an African race walker. So far, the continent with distance pedigree in every foothill has failed to get to grips with race walking &ndash; strange, considering the endurance nature of the sport.
But South Africa&rsquo;s Lebogang Shange&rsquo;s 1:20:06 national record to finish behind Bird-Smith in Adelaide underlined another gradual rise through the ranks.
Shange&rsquo;s time was a 1:37 improvement on the PB he set at least year&rsquo;s World Championships and more than four minutes better than his best time in 2014. A podium place for Shange would not be the biggest surprise of the weekend.
Of the rest, current form might prove a guide. Perseus Karlstrom is a surprising fourth on this year&rsquo;s world list. The Swede&rsquo;s 1:19:11 win in Podebrady was his second big PB of the year, following his 1:21:03 clocking in Adelaide in February.
Although he has been on the race walking scene for quite a while, Christopher Linke is another dark horse. The German finished second behind Karlstrom in the Czech Republic and chopped more than a minute from his best, clocking 1:19:19.
Britain&rsquo;s Tom Bosworth broke his country&rsquo;s 28-year-old national record when he stopped the clock at 1:20:41 to win at the IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting in Dudince in March.
The 26-year-old wasn&rsquo;t even born when Ian McCombie set the previous mark at the 1988 Olympics. The previous year at the World Championships, McCombie secured an honourable ninth in Rome. Perhaps Bosworth could produce a performance to make the Eternal City memorable for British supporters.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

All roads not only lead to Rome for 20km race walkers at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016; there is one thoroughfare about to see an epic battle against the backdrop of the ancient Colosseum on the lip of the course.

Preview: men’s 20km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

All of Italy would like Eleonora Giorgi to break the tape in the women&rsquo;s 20km at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on Saturday.
The home favourite appears to be the only race walker capable of breaking the stranglehold of the top five on the 2016 world list dominated by China, who on current form is a shoo-in for the team title.
In truth, only a catastrophe will see world record-holder and No.1 Liu Hong denied a team gold along with Qieyang Shenjie and Lu Xiuzhi as back up.
The superlative Liu recorded 1:25:56 in March in Huangshan &ndash; nearly two minutes, equating to about 600 metres, ahead of Qieyang&rsquo;s time in winning the IAAF Race Walking Challenge in April&rsquo;s Rio Maior race.
Remembering her scintillating 1:24:38 world record in La Coruna last year that ended all arguments over the fastest woman on the planet, Liu could walk well within herself and still win by the proverbial street.
But if China tops the podium individually and as a team, the talented Giorgi could also pocket two medals.
Giorgi is joined on the host nation&rsquo;s team by Elisa Rigaudo. The 35-year-old has earned bronze medals at the 2008 Olympics, 2011 World Championships and 2006 European Championships, but more immediately telling, has a 1:28:31 clocking for third at Rio Maior, only a minute outside her eight-year best.
Battle will again commence to be No.1 on the Iberian Peninsula as well as a podium place for Spain and Portugal.
Numbers 10, 11 and 12 on the 2016 world list belong to race walkers from the two countries, with Ana Cabecinha heading Portugal&rsquo;s three on 1:29:11 for third place at Dudince in March.
Portuguese teammate Ines Henriques is next, and Spain&rsquo;s Beatriz Pascual belies the 34 years she will celebrate the Monday after the race with a 1:29:27 on home soil in February.
Both countries already have team medals from previous editions of these championships, and along with the afore mentioned, Spain can boast Raquel Gonzales, who clocked 1:29:46 at the same southern Spain race as Pascual, as well as experienced Maria Jose Poves and Julia Takacs.
Henriques get support from 41-year-old Susana Feitor, third at the 2005 World Championships, as well as previous World Cup medallist Vera Santos. Feitor will be making her 11th appearance at these championships, setting a record number for women.
In fact, the women&rsquo;s team championship looks to be the closest of the weekend, but others who could make an individual mark serve as a timely reminder of Rio&rsquo;s Olympics on the near horizon.
Erica De Sena looks set to carry the hopes of 204 million Brazilians in August, and the 30-year-old has given them reason to believe.
Her progress over the past three years has seen more than a minute lopped off each calendar best. The current mark for the partner of Ecuadorian hope Andres Choco is 1:28:22 for second behind Giorgi at Dudince in March.
A race walker knocking about 500 metres off her previous best three years in a row is sooner or later going to land a medal, and Rome could just be the venue where that starts for De Sena.
Greek race walker Despina Zapounidou is a lucky 13th on the 2016 world list with 1:29:35 set in March, and there is much to admire with the efforts made by smaller countries on the global race walking stage.
Brazil has three to back up De Sena, while Peru is sending two. And, for the first time, Ethiopia has a full complement of four women race walkers. Long known for its distance superlatives on running track and road in both sexes, the country is now branching out into race walking.
If they master the discipline, their endurance pedigree could permeate throughout the one continent yet to make an impact on the race walking scene.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

All of Italy would like Eleonora Giorgi to break the tape in the women’s 20km at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on Saturday.

Preview: women’s 20km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

In the absence of world record-holder Yohann Diniz, China looks to have assembled the strongest team for the 50km at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016.
Six years have passed since their sole 50km team victory at these championships, while their only individual triumph at this event dates back to 1995. But with five men who have this year gone faster than 3:49 &ndash; no other man on the entry list has bettered 3:51 &ndash; China has serious challengers for both individual and team honours.
The team is led by 37-year-old Han Yucheng, who came out of retirement last year. The 2003 Asian Champion, who took 20km bronze at the 2006 World Race Walking Cup, finished second in China&rsquo;s Olympic trial race in March in 3:42:43, one of the fastest times of his career and just six minutes shy of the 3:36:20 PB he set back in 2005.
The team also includes three-time World Championships representative Xu Faguang and Zhang Lin, who finished sixth at last year&rsquo;s World Championships.
Olympic champion Jared Tallent will want to regain the title he won at the 2012 edition of these championships. The 31-year-old Australian has had a quiet 2016 so far, but the world silver medallist shows no signs of slowing down and warmed up for Rome by posting a nippy 1:21:50 over 20km in Taicang last month.
But it&rsquo;s at 50km where he excels; of all the races he has completed over the longer distance, Tallent has only once finished outside of the top three.
When it comes to seniority, though, no one can match Jesus Angel Garcia.
It is one thing to be competing at age of 46, but the 1993 world champion will be spearheading Spain&rsquo;s charge. Even though pressed at the IAAF press conference that heralded the 2014 race, the man from Madrid gave nothing away when it came to revealing secrets of longevity.
This is his 12th straight appearance at these championships, and his list of achievements needs at least two scrolls of a web page heralding his honours.
He won this race as far back as 1997 in an unseasonal snowstorm, and continues to defy the odds. He was ninth at the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015 in 3:46:43, and if Garcia were vaguely interested in senior records, his at M40 and M45 should stand for eternity over the distance.
Backed up by Mikel Odriozola &ndash; himself just shy of a 43rd birthday, but sporting a 3:54:21 mark in February &ndash; and four other solid Spaniards, they too should be somewhere towards the top of the leader board.
Italy and India also have a good set of race walkers to test the rest around the course that shades the ancient Colosseum.
There&rsquo;s nothing like a bit of home support when things get tough after three hours of race walking in heat. It&rsquo;s then that the mind has to take over a weary body, even among the best. A bit of backing goes a long way.
Italy&rsquo;s long-sock-wearing Marco de Luca set a 3:45:25 personal best two years ago. Although the 34-year-old has gained medals at the European Cup, his solid top-10 placings at the major championships over the past 10 years offer the experience needed to deal with the gruelling distance.
Backed up by three teammates with sub-3:50 PBs at the distance &ndash; including 2008 Olympic champion Alex Schwazer &ndash; the trick for De Luca and the Italian team is to survive and thrive. Italy has always delivered at major championships, and this one is in their own back yard.
Few would have thought of India as a race-walking force just a couple of years ago. That said, with a nation of more than a billion people, there has to be a decent quorum somewhere for just about every sport you can name.
Gurka soldier Basanta Bahadur has only a modest 3:56:48 PB, but it was set at the 2012 Olympics and he backed that up with a 1:21:29 over 20km two years ago in Nomi.
Chandan Singh has already made the Olympic qualifying mark at 20km, and Jitender Singh was third in the Indian Championships in February.
After India finished eighth in the men&rsquo;s 20km and seventh at 50km two years ago, an elevation to one of the podium steps in the team competition has strong possibilities.
If it&rsquo;s not to be Italy or India, then Poland, Spain or Ukraine is good for the team trophy.
The latter has been upwardly mobile since they took 50km bronze in 2012, and then silver two years later.
Ivan Banzeruk was eighth in Taicang, Serhiy Budza was one place further back and Andriy Hrechkovskyi came home 17th, and they&rsquo;re all set to compete again in Rome.
Poland boasts a talented trio of Rafal Sikora, Grzegorz Sudol and Damian Blocki. He may be 37, but Sudol has a 3:41:20 personal best from three years ago that suggests if the trio survive intact, they will challenge the leaders.
For the first time ever at a global championship, women will compete alongside men in the 50km race walk. USA&rsquo;s Erin Talcott is the sole woman entered for this year&rsquo;s race. With a best of 4:33:22 for the distance, she is faster than three of her four male teammates in the 50km.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

In the 50km event on Sunday morning, Italy and India have a good set of race walkers to test the rest around the course that shades the ancient Colosseum at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

Preview: 50km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

Cesar Augusto Rodriguez is the sole survivor from the top 10 at the IAAF World Junior Championships Oregon 2014. As a result, an elevation to the U20 men&rsquo;s 10km podium at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on Saturday will get short odds.
Even though he is still just 18, Rodriguez bettered his personal mark to 41:01.71 in Lima last year and endorsed the rise of another newcomer to the sport.
Peru has entered race walkers for all five races over the weekend in the Italian capital &ndash; a far cry from recent times when Colombia and Brazil stood alone waving the South American flag at major championships.
However, the current top eight on the 2016 U20 men&rsquo;s world list all come from just one country: China.
The country of a billion plus has brought just two to Rome. But as it is race walkers one and two on the list, it would be hard to argue against world youth silver medallist Zhang Jun, who clocked 40:10 in March, and Jin Xiangqian, who recorded 40:43 a month later in Taicang.
Spain&rsquo;s Manuel Bermudez could challenge Rodriguez and the Chinese duo, having notched 41:23.3 last month. Australia&rsquo;s Tyler Jones and Adam Garganis, who have clocked 43:39.86 and 43:13.24 on the track in Sydney and Perth respectively, are both in the current top 10 on the 2016 U20 world list.
Japan has pedigree at senior level, and their juniors are also making inroads on the world scene.
Masaya Ishikawa stopped the clock at 41:01 in Kobe in February and, nine seconds after, Masatora Kawano claimed second. Both are ready and able to repeat the feat in Rome.
Great Britain has never had a junior race walker finish inside the top eight at these championships, but Callum Wilkinson could be the athlete to end that drought. The 19-year-old is undefeated outdoors this year, winning in Podebrady and Dudince after setting a national U20 record of 41:31 in March.
Iraq has a single race walker in the U20 race. Quite what it took Mustafa Razzak Alwan to make the starting line has yet to be discovered. But as the national senior 20km record for a country in turmoil is a lowly club standard 1:54:38, as long as Alwan gets round, he will have notched one more victory for athletics and race walking in particular.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

Cesar Augusto Rodriguez is the sole survivor from the top 10 at the IAAF World Junior Championships Oregon 2014. As a result, an elevation to the U20 men’s 10km podium at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on Saturday will get short odds.

Preview: U20 men’s 10km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

One country and two races dominate the leading times ahead of Saturday morning&rsquo;s 10km U20 race for women at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016.
Needless to say, the country is China, who as the most populous place on the planet has plenty to choose from.
More&rsquo;s the point, they have not even chosen their fastest race walker for the first of the five races over the weekend.
Ma Yiming stays at home even though she recorded 44:25 in April in Taicang to head the 2016 world U20 list.
However, the difference between her and world youth champion Ma Zhenxia is a mere five seconds after the latter won at Huangshan in March.
Treading on the heels of the second Ma in that race was Zhang Lifang just one second back. And it was only a further 11 seconds difference to Ma Li, who recorded 44:41 to make up China&rsquo;s trio for Italy.
Their team bosses could have chosen any three from the next five and still have better times than the first race walker in the world&rsquo;s top 10 who won&rsquo;t wear a red vest in Rome.
Taika Nummi from Finland has walked a few seconds quicker on the track, but notched 45:49 and first place at Podebrady in April.
She is the only non-Chinese in the world&rsquo;s top 10, so it&rsquo;s going to need a catastrophe demanding three Chinese non-finishers or surprise disqualifications to upset the Asian applecart.
On the track so far in 2016, Australia boasts three of the four quickest times. Clara Smith&rsquo;s win in Sydney in 47:17.64 heralded a good start to the month for the 18-year-old.
Sadly, the second ranked on the track won&rsquo;t be in Rome. Puerto Rico&rsquo;s 16-year-old Rachelle De Orbeta recently recorded 47:34.69, and the presence of a race walking minnow like Puerto Rico would have enhanced the global spirit of the race.
However, Tayla-Paige Billington will line up alongside Australian teammate Smith after her 47:47.49 clocking in Perth in March.
In previous U20 races, the opening kilometres tend to be cagey affairs with a leading group often 20 strong, so that a final-lap sprint decides the trophies.
This time, the leading group of three Chinese athletes could be home and hosed up to a minute before the next race walker crosses the finish line.
Paul Warburton for the IAAF

One country and two races dominate the leading times ahead of Saturday morning’s 10km U20 race for women at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016.

Preview: U20 women’s 10km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

The final entry lists for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 are now available on the IAAF website.
More than 400 international athletes &ndash; including China&rsquo;s Olympic 20km race walk champion Chen Ding and world champion and world record-holder Liu Hong &ndash; have been confirmed as entered by 60 IAAF member federations.
The complete lists, as at 2 May 2016, are available to download as a PDF file in the &lsquo;related documents&rsquo; panel on the right-hand side of this page.
Full coverage of the championships, including live results, multimedia and event information including previews and reports, will be available <a href="http://www.iaaf.org/competitions/iaaf-world-race-walking-team-championships" target="_blank">here</a>.
NB: official start lists will only become available after the technical meeting, which takes place on Friday 6 May.
IAAF

The final entry lists for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 are now available on the IAAF website.

 Final entries for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 now available

Mexico&rsquo;s Pedro Daniel Gomez and local walker Wang Yingliu claimed surprise victories in the men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s 20km events at the IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting in Taicang, China, on Saturday (23).
It was the fifth edition since the Challenge meeting was first launched in the southeastern city of China in 2011 &ndash; with the IAAF World Race Walking Cup also being held here in 2014 &ndash; and Chinese athletes have swept all the titles in the previous four editions but the 25-year-old Gomez finally broke the hosts&rsquo; domination and became the overseas athlete to win in Taicang.
Competing in cool conditions with the temperature staying around 16 degrees Celsius and light rain falling off-and-on, Gomez raced down his countryman Ever Palma over the final kilometre and crossed the line in 1:20:52, with the latter two seconds behind in second place
It is the first ever international victory as a senior for Gomez, who was the runner-up at the 2007 IAAF World Youth Championships and 2009 Pan American junior champion over 10,000m on the track, although his winning mark in Taicang was 47 seconds shy of his personal best set earlier this month when he finished seventh in Podebrady, Czech Republic.
Sweden&rsquo;s Perseus Karlstrom has improved his personal best twice this season and set a national record of 1:19:11 en route to winning in Podebrady, where he beat both Gomez and Palma, but in Taicang he was just a little below his best and finished third in 1:21:03.
In the absence of London 2012 Olympic Games champion Chen Ding, two-time world silver medallist Wang Zhen and World Cup silver medallist Cai Zelin &ndash; all of whom are preparing for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 where China are expected to be a formidable presence&ndash; Wang Rui finished as the fastest Chinese walker in fourth place with 1:21:23.
Ricardo Ortiz, only 21, completed a good day for Mexico when he improved his best by almost four minutes to finish fifth in 1:21:45 while Australia&rsquo;s 2012 Olympic champion 20km Jared Tallent, competing in Taicang for the sixth straight year, is still looking for his first win in the Chinese city after finishing sixth in 1:21:50.
In the women&rsquo;s race, neither former champion Sun Huanhuan nor fellow Chinese national team member Yang Jiayu, both of whom were on the entry lists, showed up on the start line and instead it was another Chinese walker, Wang Yingliu, who took the honours with a convincing win by more than minute in 1:30:51, just 31 seconds slower than her PB set in Beijing last year and
It is the second victory this month for the 24-year-old Wang , who clocked 1:31:04 to win at the second leg of Chinese National Race Walk Grand Prix in Shangrao two weeks ago.
China&rsquo;s Xie Lijuan, a former national junior champion in 2009, finished second in 1:32:19 while Hungary&rsquo;s Viktoria Madarasz set a season best of 1:32:33 to finish third.
As is the case in the men&rsquo;s race, most of China&rsquo;s best known and leading female race walkers &ndash; including world champion and world record-holder Liu Hong, world silver medallist Lu Xiuzhi and 2012 Olympic silver medallist Qieyang Shenjie &ndash;were absent and preparing for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 in two weeks&rsquo; time.
Vincent Wu for the IAAF

Mexico’s Pedro Daniel Gomez and local walker Wang Yingliu claimed surprise victories in the men’s and women’s 20km events at the IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting in Taicang, China, on Saturday (23).

Gomez and Wang get surprise wins in Taicang

China&rsquo;s team for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on 7-8 May will be led by world champion Liu Hong and Olympic champion Chen Ding.
Liu finished second in the 20km race walk when the 2014 event was held on home soil in Taicang and then went on to break the world record one year later with a time of 1:24:38.
Having recently won China&rsquo;s Olympic trial race with a world-leading 1:25:56 &ndash; the third-fastest time of her career &ndash; Liu will be hoping to become China&rsquo;s first winner of the women&rsquo;s 20km at these championships since 1999.
She will be joined on the full-strength women&rsquo;s 20km team by world silver medallist Lu Xiuzhi, Olympic silver medallist Qieyang Shenjie, 2013 National Games winner Nie Jingjing, and 20-year-old Yang Jiayu, who took silver in the junior 10km in Taicang two years ago.
Chen, who also took silver at the IAAF World Championships Moscow 2013, leads a similarly strong team for the men&rsquo;s 20km.
Two-time world silver medallist Wang Zhen, 2014 World Cup silver medallist Cai Zelin, national champion Wang Kaihua, and 2013 Asian silver medallist Li Tianlei also feature on the 20km team.
There is a combination of youth and experience in the men&rsquo;s 50km selections. Han Yucheng represented China at the 2004 Olympics and then set an Asian 50km record of 3:36:20 six months later. A bronze medallist at the 2006 World Race Walking Cup, Han was out of action in 2013 and 2014, but returned in 2015.
Last month, he clocked 3:42:43 &ndash; his fastest time for 11 years &ndash; to finish second in China&rsquo;s Olympic trial race, making him the fastest man this year heading to Rome in the 50km.
At the other end of the age spectrum, 20-year-old Liu Jian has been named in the 50km, having smashed his PB by nine minutes this year with 3:47:51.
China&rsquo;s junior teams are also strong and boast the three fastest U20 women and the two fastest U20 men in the world this year.
<h3>Chinese team for Rome</h3>
MEN 20km: Cai Zelin, Chen Ding, Li Tianlei, Wang Kaihua, Wang Zhen 50km: Han Yucheng, Liu Jian, Xu Faguang, Zhang Hang, Zhang Lin U20 10km: Hu Linfeng, Jin Xiangqian, Zhang Jun
WOMEN 20km: Liu Hong, Lu Xiuzhi, Nie Jingjing, Qieyang Shenjie, Yang Jiayu U20 10km: Ma Li, Ma Zhenxia, Zhang Lifang

China’s team for the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016 on 7-8 May will be led by world champion Liu Hong and Olympic champion Chen Ding.

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Report: 50km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

Report: women’s 20km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016

Report: men’s 20km race walk – IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Rome 2016