Wang Hongren wins the U20 men's 10km in Muscat (© Dan Vernon)
In the end the U20 men’s 10km at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships Muscat 22 went to form – but not in the way expected.
A terrific walk from Wang Hongren, sporting immaculate style, saw the Chinese cross first, but barely 100 metres earlier he was seemingly battling for third at best.
A dramatic finale saw leader Amit Khatri striding to gold only to be pulled in to the penalty zone and watch his hopes and India’s quest for a first individual gold dashed. Seconds later, world U20 champion Heristone Wanyonyi from Kenya suffered the same fate and let in Wang and compatriot Zeng Yu, the two fastest in the field on paper.
Wang hit the line and almost the deck in a mixture of exhaustion and triumph, but Zeng saw a blue flash over his shoulder that proved to be Diego Giampaolo of Italy.
In fact, in the final straight, the Italian wrongly assumed he had been called into the penalty zone, but he quickly recovered to overtake Zeng and dip at the line for a surprise second place.
In an event that saw the early morning temperature rise to 27C, the race fascinatingly ebbed and flowed throughout. Jaromir Moravek shot away from the start with Christiaan Bester from South Africa, head tilted, in close order, with the rest strung out in a line across the road.
The first kilometre was timed at 4:25; but Bester was caught before the end of the first two-kilometre loop, reached by the Czech leader in 9:08 that reflected the uphill climb on the way back. Finland’s Sajan Irincheev started to give chase, but the rest were ominously biding their time even though Moravek got to halfway in 23:07.
However, a glance back revealed the remains of the leading pack were on him, and his race for a podium finish was all but over, even though he did gamely stay with the pack.
Mazium Demir from Turkey then took up the challenge and surged at 5.5km to put 30 metres between him and a loose group of three trying to hang on. That 4:25 kilometre was exactly the same as the opening burst from Moravek, and it told. Shouted on by Turkish coaches, Demir pumped his arms like a man on a mission, but the Chinese pair were moving quicker.
Almost as quickly as he had taken the lead, Demir lost it to Wang and Zeng. But Amit, silver medallist at last year’s World U20 Championships behind Wanyonyi, refused to be daunted and slowly latched on to the Chinese duo before first passing Zeng and then Wang over the final kilometre. Wanyonyi, too, was quickly gaining ground and passed Zeng to be in with a chance of bronze.
If they were unaware the cruel fate that awaited them, they quickly discovered that a 60-second penalty was the difference between everything and nothing.
Wang went on to cross the line first in 44:06. Teammate Yu held on to the runner-up spot until the final few seconds when Italy’s Giampaolo strode past to take second place in 44:14. Yu clocked the same time in third.
Wanyonyi, despite a one-minute penalty, finished in fourth place in a Kenyan U20 record of 45:18. Not realising he was on the final lap, he went on to complete another circuit after crossing the finish line.
Unsurprisingly, the finishing times were nothing like a lot of athletes' personal bests, but these were tough conditions that tested everyone.
China were comfortably team winners, while Giampaolo’s late charge elevated Italy to silver with a consistent race from Spain allowing them on to the podium for third.
Paul Warburton for World Athletics
| LEADING RESULTS | ||
| 1 | Wang Hongren 🇨🇳 CHN | 44:06 SB |
| 2 | Diego Giampaolo 🇮🇹 ITA | 44:14 |
| 3 | Jiang Jinyan 🇨🇳 CHN | 44:14 SB |
| Full results | ||
