WCH Tokyo 25 brushstroke (© World Athletics)
Last three sets of World Athletics Championships medallists
2023 – 1 Álvaro Martín (ESP) 1:17:32, 2 Perseus Karlström (SWE) 1:17:39, 3 Caio Bonfim (BRA) 1:17:47
2022 – 1 Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) 1:19:07, 2 Koki Ikeda (JPN) 1:19:14, 3 Perseus Karlström (SWE) 1:19:18
2019 – 1 Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) 1:26:34, 2 Vasiliy Mizinov (ANA/RUS) 1:26:49, 3 Perseus Karlström (SWE) 1:27:00
Last two sets of Olympic medallists
2024 – 1 Brian Pintado (ECU) 1:18:55, 2 Caio Bonfim (BRA) 1:19:09, 3 Álvaro Martín (ESP) 1:19:11
2020 – 1 Massimo Stano (ITA) 1:21:05, 2 Koki Ikeda (JPN) 1:21:14, 3 Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) 1:21:28
Fastest winning times in World Athletics Championships history
Jefferson Pérez (ECU) – 1:17:21 (2003)
Álvaro Martín (ESP) – 1:17:32 (2023)
Jefferson Pérez (ECU) – 1:18:35 (2005)
Slowest winning time in World Athletics Championships history
Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) – 1:26:34 (2019)
Best marks on Japanese/Asian soil
1:16:10 1 Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) - Kobe 16.02.2025
1:16:36 1 Yusuke Suzuki (JPN) - Nomi 15.03.2015
1:16:51 1 Koki Ikeda (JPN) - Kobe 18.02.2024
Biggest winning margins
1:01 2005 – 1:18:35 Jefferson Pérez (ECU), 1:19:36 Francisco Javier Fernández (ESP)
0:45 1999 – 1:23:34 Ilya Markov (RUS), 1:24:19 Jefferson Pérez (ECU)
0:39 2003 – 1:17:31 Jefferson Pérez (ECU), 1:18:00 Francisco Javier Fernández (ESP)
Smallest winning margins
0:02 2001 – 1:20:31 Roman Rasskazov (RUS), 1:20:33 Ilya Markov (RUS)
0:02 2017 – 1:18:53 Eider Arévalo (COL), 1:18:55 Sergey Shirobokov (ANA/RUS)
0:07 2022 – 1:19:07 Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN), 1:19:14 Koki Ikeda (JPN)
0:07 2023 – 1:17:32 Álvaro Martín (ESP), 1:17:39 Perseus Karlström (SWE)
Multiple winners
1987/91 - Maurizio Damilano (ITA)
2003/05/07 - Jefferson Perez (ECU)
2019/22 - Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN)
Winners by country
3 - Ecuador
3 - Italy
3 - Spain
2 - Mexico
2 - China
2 - Russia
2 - Japan
2 - Colombia
Five historic facts
- Jefferson Perez (ECU) is the most successful athlete in this event. He has won three gold medals in the event between 2003-07. His winning time of 1:17:21 was a world record at the time and remains the championship record
- Maurizio Damilano (ITA) won gold in Tokyo in 1991 in 1:19:37 which stood as a championship record for 12 years
- The 20km race walk in Budapest in 2023 was the best race in terms of depth in World Championships history. All three medallists broke the 1:18-barrier and six of the 10 fastest times in World Championships history were set in the race
- Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) is the only Japanese winner of this title. He won back-to-back titles in 2019 and 2022
- Damilano is the only race walker to win this title on home soil. He won gold in Rome in 1987
Potential storylines
- There will be no double gold for Evan Dunfee (CAN) due to injury. "I'm disappointed that I won't be making it to the start line for the 20km. We briefly held out hope of recovery by an MRI has confirmed the intense pain I'm in is a fairly bad tear," he said.
- Can Toshikazu Yamanishi (JPN) win his third 20km race walk title? If so, he will equal Jefferson Perez's (ECU) record-haul of three titles
- A new champion will be crowned as 2023 world champion Alvaro Martin (ESP) retired at the end of 2024 having won Olympic gold in the mixed race walk relay in Paris with Maria Perez. Another notable absentee is Olympic champion Brian Pintado (ECU) due to injury
- There is an outside chance of medal for Ethiopia. Misgana Wakuma finished sixth at the 2024 Olympic Games. He was also Ethiopia's flag-bearer for the Opening Ceremony in Paris 2024. There has only been one African medallist in the men's 20km race walk in Word Championships history (Hatem Ghoula, TUN - 2007)
- Top-10 finishers from the 35km race walk who will be competing in the 20km race walk include: 2. Caio Bonfim (BRA), 5. Aurelion Quinion (FRA), 9. David Hurtado (ECU), 10. Maher Ben Hlima (POL)
