Francesco Fortunato in action at the Italian Indoor Championships (© Chiara Montesano)
European bronze medallist Francesco Fortunato took almost 13 seconds off the world short track record* when winning the 5000m race walk in 17:54.48 at the Italian Indoor Championships in Ancona on Saturday (28).
The Italian race walker had clocked 17:55.65 at these championships last year, but the performance was not ratified due to a technical judging issue, meaning Mikhail Shchennikov’s 18:07.08 clocking from 1995 remained the ratified world short track record.
“I’m satisfied with myself,” said Fortunato. “I came here to try again and I didn’t give up. After the disappointment last year, I felt this was a record I deserved.”
Elsewhere, European indoor champion Larissa Iapichino won the women’s long jump with 6.78m and Gabriele Chilà won the men’s event with 8.00m. 2021 Olympic champion Antonella Palmisano claimed the women’s 3000m race walk title in 11:56.74.
On Sunday (1), joint world leader Zaynab Dosso clocked 7.10 to win the 60m. Christian Falocchi set another PB in the high jump, clearing 2.30m.
Federico Riva and Ludovica Cavalli achieved doubles in the 1500m and 3000m, respectively clocking 3:59.34/7:45.25 and 4:38.22/8:51.38.
*Subject to the usual ratification procedure
Karalis vaults 6.17m at Greek Indoor Championships
On a busy weekend of national indoor championships action, Emmanouil Karalis was another standout performer.
The world and Olympic medallist cleared 6.17m at the Greek Indoor Championships in Paiania to move to second on the world all-time list.
He cleared the height on his second attempt, and then raised the bar to 6.31m and had two ambitious attempts at a would-be world record. He now sits behind only world record-holder Mondo Duplantis on the world all-time list.
The Greek star is set to face Duplantis for the first time this season at the Mondo Classic meeting in Uppsala on 12 March, ahead of the World Athletics Indoor Championships Kujawy Pomorze 26 later that month.
Yemisi Ogunleye produced the early stand-out performance at the German Indoor Championships in Dortmund.
The Olympic shot put champion threw an outright PB of 20.37m to win the title by almost two metres from Katharina Maisch. Ogunleye's mark is an improvement of 10cm on her previous best, set at last year's German Indoor Championships. It put her second on the 2026 world list behind world champion Jessica Schilder (20.49m) before she moved to third following the first day of US Championships action.
US records fall in New York
The leading performances on the season top list for the women’s shot put were reshuffled again on Saturday following the first day of the USA Indoor Championships in New York.
Two-time world champion Chase Jackson set one of three US indoor records on the first day of the championships, throwing 20.44m to add 20 centimetres to her own previous record and win her fourth consecutive national indoor title.
Nick Christie won his eighth national indoor gold with a US indoor 5000m race walk record of 19:13.37 that took more than two seconds off the ratified US record. In the women’s event, Lauren Harris retained her title in a US record of 22:14.69.
Olympic and world champion Cole Hocker won a fierce 3000m clash against Yared Nuguse and Nico Young. After a sprint finish, Hocker narrowly pipped his fellow Olympic 1500m medallist Nuguse and US 10,000m champion Young, winning in 7:39.25.
Emily Mackay won the women’s 3000m ahead of Elle St. Pierre – 8:30.01 to 8:31.07.
Dylan Beard ran a PB of 7.37 to win the 60m hurdles ahead of Trey Cunningham (7.40), equalling the world lead set by Cunningham earlier in the month.
Zach Bradford cleared six metres for the first time to win the pole vault, soaring over 6.01m. It is the first time that five athletes have ever cleared six metres or more in the same year.
Double Olympic medallist Jasmine Moore completed another double in New York, leaping 6.86m to get gold in the long jump on Saturday before soaring 13.89m to take the triple jump title on Sunday.
Other winners on day two of the US Championships included world record-holder Khaleb McRae (45.01) in the 400m, Jordan Anthony (6.45) ahead of Trayvon Bromell (6.47) and Noah Lyles (6.51) in the men's 60m, Jacious Sears (7.04) ahead of U20 sisters Mia Maxwell (7.13) and Mariah Maxwell (7.14) in the women's 60m, Cooper Lutkenhaus (1:46.68) and Addison Wiley (1:59.43) in the 800m, and Roger Steen (21.81m) in the shot put.
Sarâboyukov wins Bulgarian indoor title treble
Bozhidar Sarâboyukov, who holds the world lead in the long jump at 8.45m, won three titles at the Bulgarian Indoor Championships in Sofia.
He started with an outright PB of 16.61m to take the triple jump title on Saturday before he cleared 2.28m for another PB in the high jump. He closed his campaign by soaring 8.12m from his single attempt in the long jump.
Hristo Iliev improved his Bulgarian record to 6.51 to win the 60m.
Mohamed Attaoui set a championship record of 1:45.62 to win the 800m at the Spanish Indoor Championships in Valencia, while Enrique Llopis won the 60m hurdles in 7.51.
Nadine Visser moved to equal second on the world top list for the 60m hurdles with 7.78 at the Dutch Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn, while world 100m hurdles champion Ditaji Kambundji claimed the Swiss 60m hurdles title in 7.80 in St. Gallen. Audrey Werro won the 800m in 1:57.98.
At the Czech Indoor Championships in Ostrava, 17-year-old Tomas Horak twice improved the European indoor U20 200m record – first to 20.74 in the heats and then 20.65 in the final.
Szymanski and Skrzyszowska among winners at Polish Indoor Championships
Jakub Szymanski and Pia Skrzyszowska secured 60m hurdles titles at the Polish Indoor Championships on Sunday, competing in the same venue – the Kujawsko-Pomorska Arena Toruń – that will host the World Indoor Championships later in the month.
Szymanski went close to his own national record by clocking 7.40, while Skrzyszowska won in 7.89. Ewa Swoboda set a season’s best of 7.07 to win the 60m and world silver medallist Maria Zodzik topped the high jump by clearing 1.95m.
Kaalund clocks 20.06 200m, 51.49 400m for Hodgkinson
Away from national championships action, USA's Garrett Kaalund ran 20.06 at the Big Ten Conference in Indianapolis on Saturday to move to third on the world short track all-time list.
Ten days after setting a world 800m short track record, Great Britain's Keely Hodgkinson dropped down to race the 400m indoors for the first time in four years. The Olympic champion clocked an outright PB of 51.49 on Sunday to win at the Scottish Athletics Indoor Invitational in Glasgow, where world silver medallist Georgia Hunter Bell ran 1:57.80 to win the 800m.
Nigeria's Kanyinsola Ajayi equalled the African indoor 60m record of 6.45 and his compatriot Samuel Ogazi ran an African 400m short track record of 44.72 at the SEC Conference at College Station.
Adaejah Hodge of British Virgin Islands ran a world lead and national record of 22.32 to win the 200m.
At the Gibson McCook Relays in Kingston on Saturday, Jamaica's Olympic and world 100m silver medallist Kishane Thompson ran a 60m PB of 6.46 (0.7m/s) to win ahead of Bryan Levell (6.47) and Ackeem Blake (6.48).
Jonielle Smith won the women's race in 7.07 (1.0m/s) ahead of world silver medallist Tina Clayton (7.08).
