Perez takes the tape in Turin (© Peter Thompson IAAF-AMS)
The northern city of Tijuana, located on the USA-Mexican border, will this weekend (8 - 9 March) host the inaugural event of the IAAF Race Walking Challenge, which will culminate at the 9th IAAF World Championships in Athletics in Paris, this August.
Mexico, is one of the world's leading Race Walking countries, and so a fitting venue for this IAAF initiative, the country having formerly hosted other major athletics events including the 1968 Olympic Games (Mexico City), 1993 IAAF World Race Walking Cup (Monterrey) and the 2000 IAAF World Half Marathon Championships (Veracruz).
Poland's reigning World, Olympic and European 50km champion Robert Korzeniowski (35), who took a remarkable 20km/50km double at the Sydney Olympics was one of the first athletes to arrive in Tijuana, on February 26.
The Pole who is without doubt the world’s greatest ever Race walker, has been training on Tijuana's beach and the track at the Unidad Deportiva, as well as promoting the event in the local media.
"Tijuana is part of my plan towards the World Champs in Paris. The field is very deep with so I'll be glad to finish in the top five," said Korzeniowski, who aims to retire after the 2004 Olympics.
Korzeniowski will race the 20km, where he will face Ecuador's Jefferson Perez, the 1996 Olympic champion and the 2002 IAAF World Race Walking Cup winner. Perez is Latin America's best bet to take the highest spot on the podium, together with some of the most heralded Mexican athletes. The host nation will be fielding, Alejandro Lopez, third last year in Turin at the World Race Walking Cup, and Olympic medallists Bernardo Segura (bronze 20km 1996) and Noe Hernandez (silver 20km 2000), although the latter has just recovered from injury.
Spain's Francisco Javier Fernandez, the European champion and the fastest walker ever over 20km (1:17:22), is also in the Tijuana 20km field.
Tijuana will be the only stop on the IAAF Race Walking Challenge, other than the World Championships in Paris, where the men's 50km race will also be contested.
Spain's Jesus Angel Garcia, the World silver medallist in 2001, will start as the favourite, but should be challenged by New Zealand's Craig Barrett, USA's Curt Clausen and Mexicans Rogelio Sánchez, Germán Sánchez, Miguel Angel Rodríguez, who was third in the 1997 Athens World Championships, and Edgar Hernández, World bronze medallist in 2001.
In the women's 20km, Russia's Olimpiada Ivanova, owner of the world best and winner in the 2001 Edmonton World Championships will face Norway's Kjersti Platzer, second 2000 Olympics, Commonwealth Champion Australian Jane Saville, Italian Elizabeta Perrone the bronze medallist from the 2001 Worlds, and Ireland’s Gillian O`Sullivan, fresh from her recent World Indoor 3000m record on home soil.
Mexico's best hopes are Rosario Sánchez, Maria Guadalupe Sanchez, fifth in the Sydney Olympics, and Victoria Palacios. Korzeniowski's sister, Silwia Korzeniowska, will also compete.
In total, over 130 athletes from 20 countries are registered for the three races in Tijuana, a city with over two million inhabitants.
Race Walking has provided Mexico's best international sports results (along with the sport of diving) with nine Olympic medals.
The Mexican’s have also taken six World Cup, three World Junior and two World senior titles, won by stars like Daniel Bautista, Ernesto Canto, Raul Gonzalez, Carlos Mercenario and Daniel Garcia, among others.
The event will be officially opened today, Friday 7 March , and will kick off on Saturday with the women's 20km, followed by the men's 20km. The 50km will be held on Sunday.
The races start and finish in Plaza del Rio and the course runs along the Paseo de los Héroes.
There is substantial prize money on offer for the six event IAAF Race Walking Challenge, with US $30,000 awarded to first place, $20,000 for second place and $15,000 for third…, graduating down to $5,000 for an eighth place finish.
The point system is also straightforward – 10 for the winner, 9 for second place, 8 for third etc…will make the challenge easy to follow during the course of the year, with rankings based upon the addition of the three best results achieved by athletes in any of the competitions.
The six scoring events are as follows –
date, venue, distances (W - Women; M - Men)
8/9 March - Tijuana (MEX): 20km W + 20 km M + 50 km M
5 April - Rio Major (POR): 20 km W + 20 km M
1 May - Sesto San Giovanni (ITA): 20 km W + 20 km M
24/25 May - Shanghai (CHN): 20 km W + 20 km M
7 June - La Coruòa (ESP): 20 km W + 20 km M
23 -31 August - Paris/St Denis (FRA): 20 km W + 20 km M + 50 km M (IAAF World Championships)
Javier Clavelo Robinson for the IAAF
