Italy's Serena Di Fabio (© Getty Images)
China have won four of the past five team titles in the U20 women’s 10km and the strength of their squad indicates that they should challenge again at the Caixa World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships Brasília 26 on Sunday (12).
They won’t start as the defending champions, however, as Spain clinched the crown in Antalya two years ago, becoming only the third nation after China and Russia to win this team title.
But China’s team boasts three of the six fastest women in the field and they will each be looking to follow in the footsteps of their compatriot Yang Xizhen who won the individual title at the last edition in 2024.
Wang Yaru leads that trio on times. The 16-year-old won both the U18 5km and 10km events at the Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix in Taicang at the start of March, setting a PB of 44:31 for the longer distance. But it was Yang Yutong who won the U20 title in Taicang and the 19-year-old will want to build on the PB of 44:49 she set that day.
They will be joined in Brasília by 18-year-old Ni Lihua who finished third in that Taicang U20 10km won by Yang, in a PB of 45:24. All three athletes will be making their international debuts.
Chloé Le Roch sits at the top of the entry list and heads to Brasília with the benefit of global experience. The 18-year-old set a French U20 record of 44:02 when finishing second at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Poděbrady last year and she was just 14 seconds off that mark when winning a national event in Lens last month. Aged 16, she finished eighth in the 10,000m race walk at the World U20 Championships in Lima in 2024, four months after finishing 18th in the U20 event in Antalya.
Italy’s Serena Di Fabio also set a national record at the European Race Walking Team Championships last year, clocking 44:08 to finish one place behind Le Roch. She has gone close to that mark this year, too, winning her national title last month in 44:17. As well as her podium finish in Poděbrady, Di Fabio secured silver on the track at last year’s European Championships and the then 16-year-old finished seventh at the last edition of the World Race Walking Team Championships, clinching team bronze for Italy and achieving the leading individual performance by athletes eligible to return for this year’s edition.
Suzu Okuno also performed well in Antalya two years ago, finishing 13th in a PB of 46:32. She returns to race for Japan, as part of a squad led by Yuna Uchiyama who set a PB of 44:46 to win the national event in Kobe in February. Harumi Tabata, who was fourth that day, completes the Japanese squad that will also be fighting for the team podium.
Italy could also have strong team prospects, as Di Fabio is joined by Valentina Adamo and Francesca Gloria Buselli who completed the podium at their national championships in respective PBs of 46:48 and 47:02.
Gina Torres leads Spain’s team title defence after winning the national U20 crown in a PB of 47:03 in February, while Şerife Berra Güven and İpek Özkavlak race for Türkiye.
Ethiopia’s Hiwot Ambaw makes her road debut after racing in the 10,000m race walk at the 2024 World U20 Championships and winning the national title in 46:22.07 at the end of March.
Jess Whittington for World Athletics