Toshikazu Yamanishi repeats as 20K Racewalk World Champion
By Elias Esquivel for the University of Oregon SOJC Track Bureau
Racewalker Samuel Gathimba has had a remarkable season thus far, becoming the first Kenyan to reach the podium at a senior global event. Friday on the first day of World Athletics Championships Oregon22, Gathimba was in position to produce yet another historic performance, sitting in third as the top men entered the last lap of the men’s 20K racewalk.
It didn’t quite work out that way.
Sweden’s Perseus Karlström passed Gathimba in the last lap, besting him by seven seconds to win bronze. The Japanese duo of Toshikazu Yamanishi and Koki Ikeda won gold and silver, respectively, in 1 hour, 19 minutes, 7 seconds and 1:19:14.
Afterwards, Gathimba was asked whether thought he was going to win the competition. He didn’t hesitate.
“Oh yes,” said Gathimba with a laugh. “I did think I would win. I maintained my pace. I was strong enough and my preparation was very high.”
Gathimba was likely not alone in his self-belief. Through 7K it was a congested race, with 21 athletes in the lead group, less than a two second difference among them. By 13K, the lead pack had shrunk to 10, and through 17K it became a four-man race. Yamanishi and Ikeda extended their lead on the field in the 18th kilometer, creating a 10-second gap and comfortably holding their positions the rest of the way. Karlström completed the last lap in 3:23 to secure third.
Yamanishi, the 2019 world champion and bronze medalist in Tokyo, said it took tremendous skill to capture his consecutive world title.
“Today was my day,” said Yamanishi. “I am happy to be the first Japanese to repeat the world title in race walking.”
Karlström admitted he thought he would be out of contention around 14K, but he stayed the course.
“The Japanese guys and the Kenyan were so strong,” said Karlström. “I thought I would finish fourth, but then I saw a tiny weakness in the Kenyan. He lost one meter, and that gave me enough energy to push and believe that I could take bronze.”
There may have been a moment of weakness from Gathimba, but the overall result doesn’t seem to discourage the 34-year-old. He said Kenya, a country with a storied history of distance runners, is capable of more in racewalking.
“I’m here to prove to them that we’ve been working on this,” said Gathimba. “Kenyans can be good walkers. More athletes are coming and we are preparing them.”
García León sets Peruvian record en route to World Championship Gold
By Madeline Ryan for the University of Oregon SOJC Track Bureau
With her sunglasses perched on the edge of her nose and her hair pulled into a slicked bun at the very top of her head, Peru’s Kimberly García León was the picture of determination in the 20-kilometer race walk on Friday.
After years of patience and hard work, García León maintained an unstoppable lead to win her country’s first gold medal on the very first day of the World Athletics Championships in Eugene. Her gold medal was the first medal awarded at the championship.
“I’m very proud of myself,” García León said. “I want to dedicate this medal to my country. We worked very hard to get here.”
García León won in 1 hour, 26 minutes, 58 seconds, which is a personal best and Peruvian record, to hold off China’s previous domination in the event. She managed this despite the hot day, which was around 81 degrees Fahrenheit during the race and brought heat waves emanating up from the black asphalt of the linear course.
“The win hasn’t sunk in, so I can’t believe it,” García León said with a laugh during the press conference following the event.
García León said her initial plan was to stay at the front group for the first 10 to 15 kilometers, and then pick up the pace after that.
This was almost exactly what happened — she led at the front of the field, shoulder to shoulder with China’s Shenjie Qieyang until the 16th kilometer. The two women had spent most of the race together, alternating close positions and flashing their identical pink sneakers against the ground. But by the 17th kilometer, García León had successfully put increasing distance between herself and Qieyang, while Polish race walker Katarzyna Zdzieblo came into second place by the 18th kilometer.
Qieyang, who earned her third medal in the event, wasn’t able to capture her long-sought gold after earning a bronze in 2011 and silver in 2019. She was “a little disappointed” but still satisfied with her performance in 1:27:56.
Silver medalist Zdzieblo set a national record for Poland in 1:27:31 and got Poland’s first medal in the event. Throughout the course, Polish fans were cheering loudly for her.
“They motivated me to keep the pace and it was something that was pushing me forward,” Zdzieblo said, “and I was very grateful for them.”
García León already has the next few years of her career planned out. A recent relocation to Ecuador for training, she said, helped her prepare for the race and feel healthy. Her plan is to stay in the same training environment in Ecuador, under the same coach, until the 2024 Olympics in Paris.
“I’ve been doing this since the early age of 5 years old. I’ve been dreaming of this, of becoming an Olympic champion and a world champion,” García León said. “The road, it’s been long, tough and full of sacrifice. But it’s a road that I love. Because I love what I do.”
