Chinese race walker Wang Zhaozhao (© Getty Images)
Rising Chinese race walker Wang Zhaozhao and Olympic bronze medallist Jemima Montag of Australia took the 20km titles at the Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix, the first World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold meeting of 2025, in the Chinese city of Taicang on Saturday (1).
The men’s race started at 8:00am and Italy’s world and Olympic gold medallist Massimo Stano pulled away immediately after the gun to take a brave sole lead. After completing the first 5km in 19:09 – close to world record pace – Stano, last year’s runner-up, was already some 30 seconds ahead of the chasing group of more than 10 men that included defending champion Zhang Jun of China and Brazil’s Olympic silver medallist Caio Bonfim.
After another kilometre with a split time of 3:50, Stano, who just celebrated his 33rd birthday on Thursday, started to suffer from his bold early charge. With his pace slowing down to about 3:55 per kilometre, Stano hit 10km in 38:44. The rising temperature had made it more difficult for the Italian, while the chasing pack gradually narrowed the gap.
On the 16th lap, Stano was finally caught and passed by the chasers, now cut to just four athletes – China’s Asian Games silver medallist Wang, Qian Haifeng, Cui Lihong as well as teenager Li Chenjie.
Stano appeared confused at first. After confirming the Chinese quartet were not lapped athletes, he tried to keep up with their pace but faded away soon.
The leading group then got further withered to just Wang and Cui, winner in Taicang in 2021. The duo remained shoulder-to-shoulder for most of the final two kilometres before the 25-year-old Wang gained a narrow lead in the last 100 metres to secure his first win on the tour.
Wang crossed the line in 1:17:30, trimming 18 seconds off his personal best set last March when finishing fourth in Taicang.
The second to fourth finishers all achieved PBs as Cui lagged three seconds behind Wang to take second place. Qian finished third in 1:17:58, and Li improved his PB by more than five minutes to place fourth in 1:18:04. Zhang, Bonfim and Stano finished fifth to seventh.
“The competition against Cui in the final two kilometres was so tight. For some moment, I even thought I could not keep my pace any longer,” said Wang. “But I made it. My speed gave me the edge in the last 100m.”
“The win really means a lot to me. I clinched my place for the Tokyo World Championships and improved my PB,” he added. “I am very happy.”
The 20km races in Taicang also served as the first leg of China’s qualifiers for the World Championships in September. The best placed Chinese athlete in each event can secure a berth for Tokyo.
During the women’s race that started at 9:50am, the temperature rose further to about 25C. Montag seemed to be better prepared for the weather, maintaining her unbeaten run into the 2025 season with a 1:27:20 victory.
The in-form Australian paced a crowded leading group in the opening stages. As the group shrank gradually, Montag stayed in pole position.
Other pre-race favourites like China’s defending champion Ma Zhenxia, and Colombia’s Olympic silver medallist Lorena Arena all failed to keep with Montag’s pace. Only Ma Li of China managed to stay with Montag until the Australian launched a powerful surge in the final kilometres to pull clear.
“The temperate is higher than we expected, but in Australia now it’s summer, so maybe we are used to it,” said the 27-year-old, who owns the Oceanian record of 1:26:25 set when finishing third at the Paris Olympic Games. “It’s a good time (today) and good practice for the World Championships. We know in Tokyo it will be hot weather, so we will practice in the heat in Australia.”
The 25-year-old Ma Li hit home eight seconds behind Montag with a PB of 1:27:28. Her compatriot Shi Yuxia also achieved PB with a clocking of 1:27:41 to place third.
Local favourite and Olympic champion Yang Jiayu chose to skip the 20km event and only focus on the marathon race walk mixed relay on Sunday (2), since she has already earned a wild card for the 20km event in Tokyo as the 2024 tour winner.
Vincent Wu for World Athletics
