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).
Birgit Fischer is a German former kayaker, who has won eight gold medals over six different Olympic Games, a record she shares with Aladár Gerevich and Isabell Werth, spanning seven Olympiads: twice representing East Germany, then four times representing the reunited nation. After both the 1988 and 2000 games, she announced her retirement, only to return for the subsequent games. She has been both the youngest- and oldest-ever Olympic canoeing champion. In 2004, she was chosen as the German sportswoman of the year.
Frank Ullrich is a German politician of the SPD and former biathlete and trainer of the German national team. Since 2021, he has been a member of the Bundestag.
Nathan Deakes is an Australian former race walker. Deakes trained with the Australian Institute of Sport.
Christoph Höhne is a racewalker who competed in the 50 km walk for East Germany in the 1960s and 1970s.
Donald James Thompson MBE was an English racewalker. He was the only British man to win a gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics, in the 50 km walk. He also won a bronze medal at the 1962 European Championships, also for the 50 km walk.
Ulrike Bruns is a retired East German athlete who competed mainly in the 1500 metres and 3000 metres.
The German Democratic Republic (GDR), often called East Germany, founded a separate National Olympic Committee for socialist East Germany on 22 April 1951 in the Rotes Rathaus of East Berlin. This was the last of three German Olympic committees of the time. It was not recognized by the IOC for over a decade.
Peter Frenkel is an East German athlete who was one of the best 20 km race walkers in the world in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Andreas Erm is a former German race walker.
Yohann Diniz is a French race walker. He is the current world-record holder for the 50 km race, with a time of 3:32:33, and for the 50,000 metres track walk, with a time of 3:35:27.
Jürgen Haase is a former track and field athlete and Olympian, who, competing for East Germany, was among the world's best long distance track runners in the 1960s and 1970s. Twice during this period, in 1966 and 1969, he was European champion in the 10,000 meters.
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.
Si Tianfeng is a Chinese race walker. He represented China at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, finishing 17th. He also competed in the 50 km walk at the 2009 Chinese National Games and won the bronze medal. Si set a Games record to take the gold medal in the 50 km walk at the 2010 Asian Games. He was fourth at the World Race Walking Cup that year.
Martin Hollstein is a German sprint canoer and Olympic champion. He has been competing since the late 2000s, mostly in kayak single, double or four.
The Men's 20 km Race Walk at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, USSR had an entry list of 34 competitors. Seven athletes were disqualified and two did not finish in the final, which was held on Thursday, 24 July 1980.
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 and only 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.
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.
Yevgeniy Lyungin is a former Soviet racewalker who competed in the 50 kilometres race walk distance. He became his country's first winner of the event at the IAAF World Race Walking Cup in 1975.
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