Chinese race walkers Yang Jiayu and Liu Hong (© Getty Images)
China’s Yang Jiayu and Liu Hong – two of the world’s fastest race walkers in history – will clash once again in the Chinese city of Taicang over 20km on Saturday (8) at the second Gold level competition in the 2023 World Athletics Race Walking Tour.
Yang set the 20km world record of 1:23:49 two years ago. After finishing second at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Muscat last March, the 27-year-old rested for most of the 2022 season.
When she returned to competition last month in Huangshan, she showed a solid form by taking a convincing 1:26:41 victory at first leg of the Chinese National Race Walking Grand Prix, which also served as a trial event for the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23.
Four-time world champion Liu, the 50km world record-holder, will also arrive in Taicang with high spirits. The 35-year-old, who is a former 20km world record-holder with a person best of 1:24:27, finished third in Huangshan in 1:27:25 last month and went on to set an Asian 35km record of 2:40:06 two weeks ago on her debut over the distance in the Slovakian city of Dudince, where she finished second behind world champion Kimberly Garcia.
The last time Yang and Liu clashed in Taicang was in 2021, when Liu won in 1:28:48 and Yang failed to finish. Liu was also victorious in Taicang in 2011 and 2012, while 2017 world champion Yang has not yet been on the top step of the podium in the eastern Chinese city.
China’s Yang Liujing, the 2019 world bronze medallist, is also a serious contender for Saturday’s race. The 24-year-old has a 1:25:59 PB, set two years ago. She was seventh at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships last year, and went on to clock a season’s best of 1:28:12 when winning in Xi’an. She came close to that time when finishing fourth in Huangshan last month in 1:28:51.
The women’s field also includes China’s Yin Lamei, who has a PB of 1:32:05 from last year. The 20-year-old has yet to compete in any 20km race so far this season, but last month she clocked 2:42:52 to finish fourth over 35km race in Huangshan, trimming more than three minutes off the PB she set last year when finishing 10th at the World Championships.
A close contest is also expected in the men’s 20km, despite the last-minute withdrawal of Kenya’s African record-holder Samuel Gathimba due to visa problems.
China’s Qian Haifeng is the fastest entrant for the men’s 20km. The 22-year-old has twice improved his PB this season, first with 1:20:20 to finish third in Huangshan last month, and then with 1:19:09 to finish second in Nomi two weeks later.
Qian will be keen to maintain that momentum and vie for his first senior triumph in Taicang, following his victory in the U18 10km event back in 2017.
Ecuador’s David Hurtado, 23, is also on the rise this season. The 2018 world U20 silver medallist cut more than a minute off his PB to claim the victory at the Ecuadorian Race Walking Championships in February in 1:19:24.
China’s Niu Wenchao is another man to watch on Saturday. The 24-year-old finished second in Huangshan last month in 1:19:59, just 26 seconds shy of his PB from 2021. The course alongside the Taicang Avenue will be familiar to Niu as he finished second at the Race Walking Tournament in Taicang in 2021.
The field also includes China’s Wen Yongjie, whose PB of 1:20:45 was set in Huangshan last month, as well as Rasulbek Dilmurodov of Uzbekistan.
China’s Qian, Wen and You Tao are also entered for the men’s 35km on Sunday.
Vincent Wu for World Athletics
