García and Fortunato set area records to win in Poděbrady

Peru’s Kimberly García and Italy’s Francesco Fortunato produced masterclasses to win the half marathons at the Poděbrady Walking – a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold meeting – in Poděbrady, Czechia, on Friday (8). 

In fact, double 2022 world champion García was just five seconds away from posting the best-ever time for the new distance. Had she encountered any opposition from 9km on, the mark set in March by China’s Jiang Yunyan – 1:31:39 – would likely be history.

Even so, 1:31:44 represents a return to top form for García, as well as a South American record.

The Peruvian kept up a relentless pace to leave her main rivals Antonella Palmisano and Paula Torres in her wake. In fairness to Olympic champion Palmisano, it was her first major race of the year and she did well to record 1:32:21, an Italian record.

But for Ecuador’s world 35km bronze medallist Torres, the day ended in disappointment. After coasting to marathon victory at the World Race Walking Team Championships in April, she was off the pace by halfway.

In fact, Torres kept going backwards before picking up a time penalty with a lap to go. She ruefully unlaced her shoes to call it a day in the penalty zone.

Just after 9km, García put the hammer down to open up a gap first on Palmisano, and then Torres. García reached the 10-kilometre mark in 43:20 with Torres seven seconds in arrears and Palmisano five seconds behind that – a gap that just kept on growing.

By 17km, the race for first place was over. García had 44 seconds over Palmisano, and 2:32 on Spain's Lucia Redondo.

Redondo’s excellent 1:34:22 PB secured the 22-year-old third place. But perhaps the biggest surprise was Lauren Harris in fourth place – she set a US record of 1:36:04, a giant 3:24 off her PB.

France’s Ana Delahaie was fifth and there was hometown success for Ema Klimentova who was sixth in a PB of 1:36:59. There were PBs as well as national records all the way to 18th place.

The men's race was nearly a repeat of the World Race Walking Team Championships in Brasília as Fortunato clocked an inaugural European record of 1:23:00 to beat Brazil’s world 20km champion Caio Bonfim (1:23:40). Only Ethiopia’s Misgana Wakuma – runner-up in Brasília – was missing.

This time, former Poděbrady winner Christopher Linke completed the top three in 1:23:45.

Francesco Fortunato in Poděbrady (© Czech Athletic Federation Ondřej Plecháček)

Fortunato also enjoyed a last lap of splendid isolation. That was because David Hurtado got ushered into the penalty zone barely a kilometre from home.

Hurtado – marathon runner-up in Brasília – was the Italian’s last challenger for victory, one Fortunato previously achieved in 2023.

In the battle for fourth place, Italy’s Andrea Cosi edged 2017 world champion Eider Arevalo on the line, both athletes clocking 1:23:59.

The major early eye-opener was Brian Pintado stepping off the course little more than a lap in. The Olympic champion is working his way back to full fitness following hip surgery but clearly has a way to go. Bonfim also appeared to be struggling, but appearances were deceiving.

Cosi was leading at 10km, passed in 40:37, with the chasers starting to splinter. But Bonfim’s internal metronome was working overtime as he ticked off laps to make his way back to the leaders, with then only six in touch. 

At 17km, it was Fortunato’s turn to make a bid for home. Only Hurtado could live with the pace as Bonfim dug in yet again to leave Cosi straining in his wake.

That extra effort cost Hurtado. With a lap to go, he was ushered into the penalty zone, his race effectively over.

That was that as far as the places were concerned. 

Aurélien Quinion was just behind Cosi and Arevalo, clocking 1:24:00 for sixth place. Leo Kopp was seventh in 1:24:27, Declan Tingay eighth in 1:24:49 and Ivan Lopez ninth in 1:25:05. A third previous Poděbrady winner, Perseus Karlström, was a tired 10th in 1:25:31.

Paul Warburton for World Athletics

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