Race walking at the Olympic Games | |
---|---|
Overview | |
Sport | Athletics |
Gender | Men and women |
Years held | Men 20 km: 1956 – 2024 Men 50 km: 1932 – 2020 Women 20 km: 2000 – 2024 Mixed Marathon Relay: 2024 |
Olympic record | |
Men | 20 km 1:18:46 Chen Ding (2012) 50 km 3:36:53 Jared Tallent (2012) |
Women | 20 km 1:25:16 Qieyang Shenjie (2012) |
Mixed | Marathon Relay 2:50:31 Álvaro Martín & María Pérez (2024) |
Reigning champion | |
Men | 20 km Brian Pintado (ECU) |
Women | 20 km Yang Jiayu (CHN) |
Mixed | Marathon Relay Álvaro Martín & María Pérez (ESP) |
Race walking events at the Summer Olympics have been contested over a variety of distances at the multi-sport event. There were three race walking events in the 2020 Summer Olympics: a men's and a women's 20 kilometres walk, and a men's 50 kilometres walk. The races were held in a final-only format.
The first men's events came at the 1908 London Olympics, which featured 3500 m and 10-mile distances. A 10-Kilometer version was introduced at the 1912 Summer Olympics and it continued until 1952 (skipping three editions from 1928 to 1936). There was also a one-off 3000 m walk at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics. The men's 20 km walk became the standard short distance for men in 1956 and has continued since then. The longer men's event over 50 km was first held at the 1932 Summer Olympics and was held continuously until the 2020 Olympics, except for a brief drop from the program in 1976 – the IAAF held a World Championship for the event in protest and it was restored.
The first women's event was introduced at the 1992 Barcelona Olympics, 84 years after the first men's race. Held over 10 km for the first two editions, the women's event was extended to match the men's 20 km distance from the 2000 Sydney Olympics onwards. Women have never commonly competed internationally over 50 km, thus it was never proposed as an Olympic event – it was the last on the Olympic athletics programme in which men competed, but women did not have an equivalent. The 50 km is also the longest distance race for an Olympic athletics event. [1] In April 2023, a new Marathon Race Walking Mixed Relay event was announced for the 2024 Games, replacing the men's 50 km event. [2]
The Olympic records in racewalking were all broken at the 2012 London Olympics. In the 20 km walk Chen Ding holds the men's record of 1:18:46 hours, while Elena Lashmanova held the women's mark of 1:25:02 hours until she was disqualified for doping in 2021. The men's 50 km record is 3:36:53 hours, set by Jared Tallent. Robert Korzeniowski is the most successful Olympic racewalker, having won the 50 km three times as well as the 20 km walk. Three other athletes have won four Olympic walk medals: Ugo Frigerio won three gold medals and a bronze in early competitions, Volodymyr Holubnychy won two 20 km walk titles as well as a silver and a bronze, and Jared Tallent won a gold medal in the 50 km along with two silver and a bronze.
The 1906 Intercalated Games, now not considered an official Olympic event, was the first venue for racewalking under the Olympic banner. Poor technique and judging significantly affected the 1500 m walk event, to the point where a rematch over 3000 m was added at short notice and judged by Constantine I of Greece.
Race walking has been particularly affected by doping, with many Russian world and Olympic champions testing positive for banned performance-enhancing drugs. [3] [4]
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Volodymyr Holubnychy | Soviet Union (URS) | 1960–1972 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
2 | Jefferson Pérez | Ecuador (ECU) | 1996–2008 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
3 | Maurizio Damilano | Italy (ITA) | 1980–1988 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
4 | Peter Frenkel | East Germany (GDR) | 1972–1976 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Wang Zhen | China (CHN) | 2012–2016 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
6 | Hans-Georg Reimann | East Germany (GDR) | 1972–1976 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Soviet Union (URS) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
2 | Italy (ITA) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
3 | Mexico (MEX) | 2 | 3 | 1 | 6 |
4 | China (CHN) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
5 | Ecuador (ECU) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
6 | East Germany (GDR) | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
7 | Russia (RUS) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
8 | Spain (ESP) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
9 | Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
10 | Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Poland (POL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
12 | Australia (AUS) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
13 | Japan (JPN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
14 | Canada (CAN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
United Team of Germany (EUA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Guatemala (GUA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Brazil (BRA) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Liu Hong | China (CHN) | 2012–2020 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
2 | Kjersti Plätzer | Norway (NOR) | 2000–2008 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
3 | Lü Xiuzhi | China (CHN) | 2012–2016 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | China (CHN) | 4 | 1 | 3 | 8 |
2 | Russia (RUS) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
3 | Italy (ITA) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
4 | Greece (GRE) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
5 | Norway (NOR) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
6 | Spain (ESP) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
7 | Mexico (MEX) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Colombia (COL) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
9 | Australia (AUS) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
2024 Paris | Spain Álvaro Martín María Pérez | Ecuador Glenda Morejón Brian Pintado | Australia Rhydian Cowley Jemima Montag |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1920 Antwerp | Ugo Frigerio Italy | George Parker Australia | Richard Remer United States |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1908 London | George Larner Great Britain | Ernest Webb Great Britain | Harry Kerr Australasia |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1912 Stockholm | George Goulding Canada | Ernest Webb Great Britain | Fernando Altimani Italy |
1920 Antwerp | Ugo Frigerio Italy | Joseph Pearman United States | Charles Gunn Great Britain |
1924 Paris | Ugo Frigerio Italy | Gordon Goodwin Great Britain | Cecil McMaster South Africa |
1928–1936 | not included in the Olympic program | ||
1948 London | John Mikaelsson Sweden | Ingemar Johansson Sweden | Fritz Schwab Switzerland |
1952 Helsinki | John Mikaelsson Sweden | Fritz Schwab Switzerland | Bruno Junk Soviet Union |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1908 London | George Larner Great Britain | Ernest Webb Great Britain | Edward Spencer Great Britain |
Rank | Athlete | Nation | Olympics | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Robert Korzeniowski | Poland (POL) | 1996–2004 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
2 | Jared Tallent | Australia (AUS) | 2008–2016 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
3 | John Ljunggren | Sweden (SWE) | 1948–1960 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
4 | Abdon Pamich | Italy (ITA) | 1960–1964 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Hartwig Gauder | East Germany (GDR) | 1980–1988 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
6 | Ronald Weigel | East Germany (GDR) Germany (GER) | 1988–1992 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Denis Nizhegorodov | Russia (RUS) | 2004–2008 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
8 | Larry Young | United States (USA) | 1968–1972 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Poland (POL) | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
2 | Great Britain (GBR) | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
3 | Italy (ITA) | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 |
4 | East Germany (GDR) | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
5 | Sweden (SWE) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
6 | Soviet Union (URS) | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
7 | Australia (AUS) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
8 | Mexico (MEX) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
9 | New Zealand (NZL) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Slovakia (SVK) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
Unified Team (EUN) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
13 | Russia (RUS) | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 |
14 | Latvia (LAT) | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
15 | Switzerland (SUI) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
16 | Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
Spain (ESP) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
18 | China (CHN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
20 | United States (USA) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
21 | Germany (GER) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Canada (CAN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Ireland (IRL) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Japan (JPN) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
Games | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1992 Barcelona | Chen Yueling China | Yelena Nikolayeva Unified Team | Li Chunxiu China |
1996 Atlanta | Yelena Nikolayeva Russia | Elisabetta Perrone Italy | Wang Yan China |
The 1906 Intercalated Games were held in Athens and at the time were officially recognised as part of the Olympic Games series, with the intention being to hold a games in Greece in two-year intervals between the internationally held Olympics. However, this plan never came to fruition and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) later decided not to recognise these games as part of the official Olympic series. Some sports historians continue to treat the results of these games as part of the Olympic canon. [5]
Two walking events were held on the track at the 1906 Games: a men's 1500 m walk and a men's 3000 m walk. The first final to be held was the shorter distance. American George Bonhag, an absolute walking novice who had competed in the 5-mile run, came away as the winner after Canada's Don Linden, the eventual runner-up, had given basic technical advice to allow him to compete. [6]
The 3000 m walk was held two days later as a last minute addition to the athletics programme, which was approved and also adjudicated by Constantine I of Greece after the dissatisfaction with the initial race. The entire walking field, minus Bonhag and Linden, was rearranged for the competition. Britain's Robert Wilkinson and Austria's Eugen Spiegler were again disqualified in the final stages for running, leaving Hungary's György Sztantics as the winner by a large margin. [7]
Event | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
---|---|---|---|
1500 metres | George Bonhag United States | Don Linden Canada | Konstantinos Spetsiotis Greece |
3000 metres | György Sztantics Hungary | Hermann Müller Germany | Georgios Saridakis Greece |
Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross-country running, and racewalking.
Race walking, or racewalking, is a long-distance discipline within the sport of athletics. Although a foot race, it is different from running in that one foot must appear to be in contact with the ground at all times. Race judges carefully assess that this is maintained throughout the race. Typically held on either roads or running tracks, common distances range from 3,000 metres (1.9 mi) up to 100 kilometres (62.1 mi).
Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. The athletics program traces its earliest roots to events used in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern program includes track and field events, road running events, and race walking events. Cross country running was also on the program in earlier editions but it was dropped after the 1924 Summer Olympics.
The World Athletics Race Walking Tour is a racewalking series organised by World Athletics. Athletes accumulate points in specific race walk meetings during the season. Performances in 10 kilometres race walk, 20 kilometres race walk and 50 kilometres race walk count towards athlete's final scores. Since 2011, racewalking performances at the World Athletics Championships and Olympic Games count towards the series. Women have competed in the 50 km distance since 2018.
George Valentine Bonhag was an American athlete and a member of the Irish American Athletic Club and the New York City Police Department. He competed in distance events, both racewalking and running, at the 1904, 1908 and 1912 Olympics and at the 1906 Intercalated Games.
Liu Hong is a Chinese race walker. She is the world record holder over the Olympic 20 km distance with a time of 1:24:38 hours, set in 2015.
Érick Bernabé Barrondo García is a Guatemalan racewalker who competes in the 20 km walk and 50 km walk events. He won the silver medal at the Men's 20 km Racewalk in the 2012 Summer Olympics, the first Olympic medal in Guatemala's history.
Cristian Andrés Chocho León is an Ecuadorian race walker who competes in both the 20 km and 50 km walk events. He is the South American record holder in the 50 km and 20,000 metres walking events.
Anežka Drahotová is a Czech athletics competitor in racewalking, middle-distance running, and steeplechase, as well an international-level cyclist. She is the Czech record holder for the 20 kilometres walk and the 10 km track walk.
The 400 metres at the Summer Olympics has been contested since the first edition of the multi-sport event. The men's 400 m has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1896 but nearly seventy years passed before the introduction of the women's 400 m, which has been held continuously since the 1964 Games. It is the most prestigious 400 m race at elite level. The competition format typically has two qualifying rounds leading to a final race between eight athletes.
The 10,000 metres at the Summer Olympics is the longest track running event held at the multi-sport event. The men's 10,000 m has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1912. The women's event was added to the programme over seventy years later, at the 1988 Olympics. It is the most prestigious 10,000 m race at elite level. The competition format is a straight final between around 30 athletes, although prior to 2004 a qualifying round was held.
The sprint hurdles at the Summer Olympics have been contested over a variety of distances at the multi-sport event. The men's 110 metres hurdles has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since the first edition in 1896. A men's 200 metres hurdles was also briefly held, from 1900 to 1904. The first women's sprint hurdling event was added to the programme at the 1932 Olympics in the form of the 80 metres hurdles. At the 1972 Games the women's distance was extended to the 100 metres hurdles, which is the current international standard.
The marathon at the Summer Olympics is the only road running event held at the multi-sport event. The men's marathon has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since the first modern Olympics in 1896. Nearly ninety years later, the women's event was added to the programme at the 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles.
The discus throw is one of four track and field throwing events held at the Summer Olympics. The men's discus throw has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since 1896. The women's event was first contested at the 1928 Olympics, being one of the five athletics events in the inaugural Olympic women's programme.
The long jump at the Summer Olympics, is grouped among the four track and field jumping events held at the multi-sport event. The men's long jump has been present on the Olympic athletics programme since the first Summer Olympics in 1896. The women's long jump was introduced over fifty years later in 1948, and was the second Olympic jumping event for women after the high jump, which was added in 1928.
Combined events at the Summer Olympics have been contested in several formats at the multi-sport event. There are two combined track and field events in the current Olympic athletics programme: a men's decathlon and a women's heptathlon.
Andrey Viktorovich Ruzavin is a Russian racewalking athlete who competes over the 20 kilometres race walk distance. He has a personal best of 1:17:47 hours for the distance, which ranks him in the top twenty of all time. Ruzavin was the silver medallist in the 20 km walk at the 2009 Summer Universiade and a bronze medallist at the 2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup.
Dane Alex Bird-Smith is an Australian racewalking athlete. He competes in the 20 kilometres race walk, and has a best of 1:19:28 hours for the distance, set in 2017. He competed at the 2016 Rio Olympics, where he was the bronze medallist. Bird-Smith represented Australia at the World Championships in Athletics three times, and has appeared four times at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships/Cup.
The 2016 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships was the 27th edition of the global team racewalking competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations. It was held in Rome, Italy from 7 to 8 May 2016. It was the first edition of the tournament under its new name, having previously been known as the IAAF World Race Walking Cup since 1989.
Vitaliy Popovich was a Ukrainian male former racewalking athlete who competed in the 50 kilometres race walk. He competed in the men's 50 kilometres walk at the 1988 Summer Olympics, representing the Soviet Union, and in the same event at the 1996 Summer Olympics, representing Ukraine. He was a three-time participant at the World Championships in Athletics, with a best of fourth at the 1991 event. He also competed at five straight editions of the IAAF World Race Walking Cup from 1989 to 1997. He set a personal best of 3:43:57 hours for the distance in 1989.
OwO