<h2>European Race Walking Team Championships</h2>
This is an event dedicated to race walking organised on a biennial basis. This event was established in 1996 and was formerly called, until 2021, the European Race Walking Cup.&nbsp;
It now includes a senior men's and women's 20km and 35km and 10km races for men and women in the U20 category. The team scores are calculated by aggregating the positions of the first three finishers (senior) or two finishers (U20). The team with the lowest aggregate of points will be judged the winner.
At the 2023 European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady, Spain topped the medal table again with six gold medals. Their star performer was Maria Perez who won the 35km race walk title in a world record of 2:37:15 and led Spain to a clean sweep of the individual medals.
Perez provided the second half of a Spanish double after Alvaro Martin won the men's event in a national record of 2:25:35 and also led Spain to the team title.
The Italians also performed brilliantly in Podebrady, coming away with five gold medals in total. Francesco Fortunato won the 20km race walk ahead of two-time winner Perseus Karlstrom and his more revered teammate Massimo Stano and Diego Giampaolo and Giulia Gabriele swept the U20 10km titles for Italy.
At the other end of the age spectrum, 39-year-old Antigoni Ntrismpioti proved her reputation as a fine championship competitor. The double European champion from Munich 2022 won the 20km race walk title for Greece, just ahead of Olympic champion Antonella Palmisano from Italy.&nbsp;
The 2025 edition of the European Race Walking Team Championships will also be held in Podebrady.&nbsp;

The U20 men&rsquo;s 10km went to form at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on Sunday (21) with favourite Diego Giampaolo leading the way and also providing the first half of an Italian double.
His lifetime best of 41:47 going into the race was the best time of the year and although he had to be content with a slower 42:16 this time - he was clearly the master of his own destiny.
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He made a move on the sixth lap no-one could live with and although he received a couple of judges&rsquo; warnings, Giampaolo held form to drape the obligatory Italian flag over his shoulders through the tape.
The tall Hayrettin Yildiz from T&uuml;rkiye stayed strong for silver and a lifetime best of 42:24 while Spain&rsquo;s Pablo Rodriguez held on for bronze and a second lifetime best on the podium with 42:37.
They were just that much better than the rest as shown when European U18 champion Frederick Weigel - son of the famous East German race walker and coach Ronald Weigel - came home fourth, 52 seconds down on the winner.&nbsp;
A pivotal moment of the race came when it looked as if Giampaolo literally caught the heel of Yildiz as they completed the seven kilometre-mark. The Turkish race walker had to drop to his knees to pull back on his left shoe dangling from his foot.
But if that was unfortunate, there was nothing either he or any of the other competitors could do about the Italian&rsquo;s push a minute later.
He upped the gears for 4:03 over the next one kilometre and a six-second lead over his pursuers, and that decided the podium.
Another close team finish saw Spain nudge Italy off the top by one point - eight to nine points - with Germany taking bronze ahead of T&uuml;rkiye - again by a single digit with 13 to 14 points.
<h2>Gabriele moves out of reach in the women&rsquo;s U20 race</h2>
And in the last race of the day, Giulia Gabriele gifted Italy its third individual gold of the day and like the U20 men, the 17-year-old struck for home on a decisive sixth lap and opened up a yawning winning gap of more than one minute.
It made the last four kilometres something of a procession and unsurprisingly, Gabriele&rsquo;s winning time of 46:42 was a personal best by 30 seconds.
[TWITTER ID="http://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1660324019156004868"]
The year&rsquo;s European U20 leading time belongs to Aldara Meilan but the Spaniard didn&rsquo;t have the answers this time. However, she still bagged a fine silver in 47:45 and led the Spaniards to the team title to ensure they would top the medal table in Podebrady.
And as a 16-year-old, Meilan has plenty of time to change the hue of her medal.
In a distant third, France&rsquo;s Ana Delahaie sprinted when it mattered to get ahead of the home nation&rsquo;s standout medal home Ema Klimentova.
That effort was to prove pivotal in the team standings with France winning team bronze on countback ahead of the host nation.
And there was also a dramatic twist in the destination of the team title with a late penalty for Giada Traina effectively scuppering Italy&rsquo;s chance of taking the team title along with the individual title.
Spain was the beneficiary as their second counter Griselda Serret came through to finish sixth which ensured the Spaniards would win the team title by one point.
And this had a tangible outcome on the overall medal table with Spain topping proceedings with six gold medals to Italy&rsquo;s five.
The only other gold medal in Podebrady went to Greece with Antigoni Ntrismpioti winning the 20km race walk title - but only just ahead of Antonella Palmisano.
Full results <a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Paul Warburton for European Athletics

Forza Italia! Double Italian U20 10km gold for Giampaolo and Gabriele in Podebrady

A fascinating women's 20km race walk at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on Sunday (21) finally fell the way of 39-year-old Antigoni Ntrismpioti.
The double European champion proved that age was no barrier when she made a winning move with a lap to go. In doing so, she got the better of Olympic champion Antonella Palmisano, who defied expectations to take silver two years after striking gold on the same course in Podebrady.
In fact, the Italian&rsquo;s last-minute charge still allowed her to grab a national flag and finish only two seconds down albeit as a result of Ntrismpioti joyously waving to all around her to the distinctive sound of Greek bouzouki music.
[TWITTER ID="http://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1660241910106030083"]
Finally, Ana Cabecinha was able to celebrate a major medal with bronze in a season&rsquo;s best of 1:29:35 - her fastest time since 2017 - in what has become a resurgent season for the 39-year-old Portuguese race walker.
Two Ukrainians Lyudmila Olyanovska and Olena Sobchuk were rewarded for their willingness to take on the pace with positions fourth (1:29:58) and fifth (1:30:48) and another early leader Clemence Berretta from France finished sixth in 1:31:14.
The heat had risen to 22 degrees by the time 43 walkers, many wearing caps, got underway. A reasonable 4:31 first kilometre saw the pace increase to four seconds quicker two laps later.
The major shock was world and European silver medallist Katarzyna Zdzieblo from Poland was clearly struggling, five seconds in arrears and fading out of contention already. She would eventually finish 14th in 1:34:18.
Ntrismpioti wisely joined the majority by donning a cap during the fourth lap and that dozen was down to eight with the diminutive Meryem Bekmez from T&uuml;rkiye augmented by Valentina Trapletti joining the phalanx at the front.
The leaders went through quarter distance in 22:26 to underline another increase in pace - an injection that proved a gear too many for Bekmez who quickly became uncoupled from the leaders and later had the ignominy of serving time in the penalty pit-stop area.
The halfway point was reached in 44:47 with Ntrismpioti composed enough to have a quick word to those around her.
And for the first time, Palmisano showed in the centre of the group and moved a single second ahead at 14km much to the surprise of many aficionados of the discipline.
After all, Palmisano had endured an injury-ravaged 2022 with a solitary - and not particularly promising - 10km outing in Madrid last month her only race since glorious gold at the postponed Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games when she won one of Italy&rsquo;s five gold&nbsp; medals.&nbsp;
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/764923c1-5efe-4dcc-ba7a-32b6454999ee?width=3936&amp;height=2624" alt="Ds C01234" />
But slowly Ntrismpioti moved through the gaps with only the returning-to-form Olympic champion for company as Olyanovska finally had to let go and was eventually reeled back in by Cabecinha.
Palmisano was gulping air halfway through the penultimate lap, and the Greek&rsquo;s sideways glance showed she knew it. She made her winning move and forged on to her fourth European title in the space of two years having also won the 35km race walk title on this same course two years ago.
In the team race, Italy edged out Ukraine - 21 to 25 points. The telling 18th place for former European Cup 50km champion Eleonora Giorgi proved the difference.
France took bronze thanks in part to a terrific ninth-place and personal best for Pauline Stey in 1:32:21. After dominating the 50km race walk, Spain had to settle for fourth in the team race led by Antia Chamosa who finished seventh in a lifetime best of 1:31:24.
<h2>Cautious approach pays dividends for Fortunato&nbsp;&nbsp;</h2>
His name translates as lucky - but there was nothing heaven sent about the best win in Francesco Fortunato's career.
The Italian grafted from first to last and thoroughly deserved his gold medal in the men&rsquo;s 20km race walk and also led his country to the team title.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/c8bfc4b0-9767-4c9c-81c4-44134e9d6551?width=1616&amp;height=1080" alt="Di S01457" />
The 28-year-old was fifth in last year&rsquo;s European Athletics Championships in Munich and fifth last time in Podebrady two years ago.
He set his lifetime best of 1:19:43 in the latter of those two championships but it was a 38:56 victory against a world-class field over 10km in Madrid just three weeks ago that filled his cup full of confidence.
Fortunato had to bide his time to pass the early leader and then come again to pass Perseus Karlstrom who was bidding for a record hat-trick of wins.
His eventual winning time of 1:18:59 - a massive improvement as well as a European lead, even allowed him to half stop and gather an Italian flag in the last 50 metres.
Earlier, the hottest time of the day greeted 48 walkers, but with a trademark cap on backwards, sunglasses and nasal strip in place, Olympic champion Massimo Stano set off like he wanted to end this early as a competition.&nbsp;
He stopped the clock for the first kilometre at 3:54 with Fortunato no more than a heartbeat behind. Meanwhile, Gabriel Bordier from France, Karlstrom and nine others were already surging ahead of a strung-out field.
After the five kilometre checkpoint, Stano stopped the clock at 19:34 with Fortunato holding steady three seconds back but two-time champion Karlstrom had gone out to a deficit of 17 seconds.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/dac0c30d-cf5c-49b4-80a6-042035d54f3f?width=3936&amp;height=2624" alt="Ds C01473" />
However, the chasing Swede could clearly see both leaders and slowly started to close the gap to a more manageable 13 seconds.
At the 10 kilometre mark in 39:27, Fortunato had defiantly drawn abreast of Stano, and the gap to Karlstrom was now only seven seconds.&nbsp;
In fact, by 12km it was a trio contesting which medal they might win, not least because Karlstrom had just reeled off a 3:53 lap to bring himself into title contention once again.&nbsp;
Having set a hot pace from the gun, Stano was the first of the triumvirate to break and by 13 kilometres, he had ceded eight seconds on the duelling duo.
And duel they did. Fortunato pushed on with a 3:56 lap to forge a six-second lead by the 15 kilometre checkpoint in 59:09.&nbsp;
And there would be no change to the medal positions in the last five kilometres. Fortunato glided to the biggest win of his career thus far in 1:18:59 ahead of Karlstrom, the exertions of a hot and humid afternoon writ large across his face for most of the last 10 kilometres, battling to silver in 1:19:27 with an equally tired Stano safe in the bronze medal position in 1:20:07.&nbsp;
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/f14526af-746a-4881-b52d-0c19031c00c6?width=1616&amp;height=1080" alt="Di S01510" />
Behind the medallists Alberto Amezcua was fourth in 1:20:24 and Spanish teammate Paul McGrath came home for fifth in 1:21:15, a lifetime best and a European U23 leading time.
At the other end of the age spectrum, Portugal&rsquo;s Jo&atilde;o Vieira deserves special mention for 10th and 1:22:08, barely two minutes shy of a PB set 19 years ago. At age 47, the multi-medallist showed he has plenty yet to offer.
The team race was the closest-run thing of the day. Thanks to Fortunato and Stano, Italy prevailed with 15 points - just a single point ahead of Spain (16), and Germany third with 45.
Full results <a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Paul Warburton for European Athletics

Ntrismpioti and Fortunato strike for contrasting 20km race walk victories in Podebrady

Maria Perez broke the world record by an impressive 29 seconds to win the 35km race walk title at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on Sunday (21) morning to provide the second half of a Spanish double in the 35km race walk.
The Spaniard - setting the first ever official world record by a Spanish athlete, subject to ratification - eclipsed the mark set by Peru's Kimberly Garcia in Dudince earlier this season to break the tape in 2:37:15 to become the first Spaniard to break a world record in any athletics discipline since Francisco Fernandez broke the world 10,000m race walk record in 2008.
"It is a nice feeling to finish the race and the time is a big reward for this. I did not think of any time or any special target before the start, I just wanted to finish the best I could. So, the record time was definitely not my goal today. I am happy to do my best and I am glad to see the race walk can be attractive and can attract such great crowds like in Podebrady.
&ldquo;I had a difficult season behind me [she was DQ'd at both the World and European Athletics Championships] and I focused on this competition very seriously. We worked on the technique and I wanted to show that I am really well prepared. The technique was still not the best but I am working on it. It will be even better," said Perez.
Perez strolled home to beat the second-placer by more than eight minutes around the 1km Lazensky Park course and after a swift 9:35 through 2km, she was leading many of the men following a combined start.&nbsp;
By 4km, she was already lapping some of the back markers in the women&rsquo;s field. Chasing the Spaniard - if you could call it that - were her teammates Raquel Gonzalez and Cristina Montesinos and Italy&rsquo;s Federica Curiazzi, who by 6km were 47 seconds down.&nbsp;
A lap later it was 59 seconds and growing to widen just about each of the remaining 28 laps.
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Everyone else was more than two minutes in arrears. Perez reached 10km in 46:17, and 1:31 in front of her two Spanish compatriots, with Curiazzi dropping off the back by seven seconds.
Further back, the pain of a race gone wrong was etched on the face of a tearful Lidia Barcella when the Italian was forced to drop out before 13km. The bronze medallist from the last edition of these championships in 2021 was clearly out-of-sorts as Perez forged on defiantly.
By 19km, the leader had lapped fourth-place Curiazzi. She went through 20km in 1:30:59, good enough for eighth best - 11th if you include Russian race walkers whose athletes remain suspended from international competition - on the 2023 European list.
One kilometre later and she had lapped the entire field.&nbsp;Meanwhile, in the race for second, Gonzalez had opened up an 11-second lead over Montesinos; the latter&rsquo;s face resigned to third at best. 
In the closing lap, Montesinos gave it one spirited last go to close the gap when she finished in 2:45:58 to Gonzalez&rsquo; 2:45:42. For Montesinos, her bronze medal-winning time represented a lifetime best by over four minutes.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/8802b686-ef6e-4f35-a566-35188c8a8f26?width=3504&amp;height=2336" alt="Di S01047" />
Curiazzi was fourth in another lifetime best of 2:49:39, and fellow Italian Nicole Colombi was fifth in yet another re-write of a personal best in 2:52:13.
It said something about the standards of a fast race that four out of the first five could all boast new times.
The team race was a 1-2-3 perfect score for Spain with Italy and Ukraine taking silver and bronze respectively.
<h2>Martin makes the grade with gold in the 35km&nbsp;</h2>
The men&rsquo;s winner at 35km was no surprise either as Alvaro Martin was head and shoulders over his rivals, leading from gun to tape.
Smooth, imperious, and inscrutable behind his dark sunglasses, the Spaniard set a national record 2:25:58 to eclipse the mark of the man who finished third, Miguel Angel Lopez.
In between the two red vests, Podebrady favourite Christopher Linke claimed silver and a German record of 2:27:05. Lopez might have relinquished his national record but he came away with individual bronze in 2:27:33 and helped the Spaniards to the team title as their second counter.&nbsp;
Long-time second-placer Aur&eacute;lien Quinion was forced to settle for fourth having spent time in the penalty area, a wave of a judge&rsquo;s hand killing his medal prospects.
Martin started like he finished, ticking off laps in a metronomic 4:10 or thereabouts for the one kilometre loop in a pleasant 14 degrees that was to rise to 21 degrees by the finish of the Czech spa town.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/871d74f1-5842-4c2b-80d6-d28c0533cb3f?width=2738&amp;height=1825" alt="Di S00849" />
The Spaniard had a lead of 20 metres after just one lap from Quinion, Lopez and Linke, with a string of walkers further back and the entire field strung out over 200 metres.
The lead was a steady 18 seconds by 7km but had already grown by two seconds on the previous circuit.
There was a nice touch between Martin and Maria Perez as they exchanged a joke when he lapped his teammate halfway through his ninth lap.
Maybe they already knew they would be smiling a lot more by the end.
Martin passed through 10km in 41:27, with the lead having extended to another seven seconds.
Just before 12km, Quinion made a concerted effort to close the gap, and forged a nine-second gap back to Lopez and Linke. He improved it over the next 2km to also cut the deficit on Martin.
Even so, the leader went through 20k in a world-class 1:22:56 with Quinion 18 seconds back, and the next two a further 36 seconds down.
The Frenchman was eating into the leader&rsquo;s lead so by 25km it was down to 12 seconds.
But it was all to unravel in a few more minutes when the judges sent Quinion into the penalty area for the regulation 3:30 that effectively ended his quest for the podium.
Meanwhile, the new battle for second was taking shape.
Linke creviced a five-second gap over Lopez - the 2022 European champion at the distance - and improved that slightly to make sure of a second place to add to his 20km gold medal from the 2017 European Race Walking Team Championships which were also held in Podebrady.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/b9b0aa83-8e21-4bbe-8f1e-2ae92e814190?width=3504&amp;height=2336" alt="Di S00940" />
The team prize went to Spain with a pained Marc Tur, who won the last edition of the 50km in 2021, doing his bit to make sure of team gold.&nbsp;
Italy beat Germany to claim silver. The medal colour would have improved by a hue had it not been for a costly time penalty for Nathaniel Seiler in the very late stages.
Full results <a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Paul Warburton for European Athletics

World record! 2:37:15 for Perez in the 35km race walk in Podebrady

There will be live streaming of the European Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@EuropeanAthletics/streams" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Athletics YouTube channel</a> on Sunday (21).
Live streaming begins at 7.25am local time (CEST) and will be accompanied by expert English-language commentary. No geo-blocking restrictions will apply.
Live results for Podebrady can be found <a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
There will be extensive race day coverage of the European Race Walking Team Championships on the European Athletics website and across the European Athletics social media channels.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<h2>Other useful links</h2>
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/european-and-olympic-champions-headline-final-entries-for-podebrady-2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final entries</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/after-contrasting-fortunes-in-2022-perez-and-gonzalez-to-join-forces-for-spain-over-35km-in-podebrady" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Maria Perez and Raquel Gonzalez feature</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/reigning-champions-karlstrom-and-palmisano-to-seek-third-20km-race-walk-titles-in-podebrady" target="_blank" rel="noopener">20km race walk previews</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/spain-to-reign-in-the-35km-race-walk-in-podebrady-" target="_blank" rel="noopener">35km race walk previews</a>&nbsp;</li>
</ul>

How to follow the 2023 European Race Walking Team Championships

All being well, Spain should top the podium in both 35km race walk events at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on Sunday (21).&nbsp;
But the caveat against the prospective favourite in the women&rsquo;s race Maria Perez is whether she can stay in the race.
The European Race Walking Team Championships will be streamed live with expert English-language commentary on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/EuropeanAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Athletics YouTube channel</a> from 7.25am CET.
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/european-and-olympic-champions-headline-final-entries-for-podebrady-2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final entries</a></li>
<li><a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Live results</a></li>
</ul>
Perez, the 2018 European 20km race walk champion, suffered back-to-back disqualifications at the World and European Athletics Championships last summer but that didn&rsquo;t seem to leave too much scar tissue as she smashed her national record with 1:25:30 at the end of this March.
There&rsquo;s no doubting the 27-year-old&rsquo;s quality, but to win Perez - who holds the European record in the 35km race walk at 2:39:16 and leads the entry list by almost ten minutes with a season&rsquo;s best 0f 2:41:38 - needs to focus on technique as much as the opposition.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/9755c32f-7060-4fe9-8a76-c82e619bddb6?width=3657&amp;height=2438" alt="Getty Images 1408957698 (1)" />
In an interview with European Athletics ahead of the championships, Perez said: &ldquo;To be honest, I&rsquo;m not aiming to win or to smash any records, my two goals in Podebrady are just to romp home and show all the technical work we have done over the last months.&rdquo;
Meanwhile, teammates Alvaro Martin and Miguel Angel Lopez are odds-on favourites in the men&rsquo;s race.
The latter won the inaugural 35km at the 2022 European Athletics Championships in Munich and also walked a national record of 2:25:58 in the World Athletics Championships.
Since then, Martin - who won the 20km race walk title in Munich - breezed to a 2:28:16 clocking on home soil at the end of February in the Spanish Championships and followed that with a 1:21:44 clocking in the 20km race walk a month later.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/568e221a-af2f-49aa-babd-6eaacbaae2ca?width=4321&amp;height=2881" alt="Getty Images 1415939089" />
While much more au fait with the shorter distance, Martin has dipped his toe into the 35km distance internationally as well, winning silver at last year&rsquo;s World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Muscat, Oman.
But this time, the double European Championship gold medallist at the 20km race walk looks more than enough to give Lopez a test to the top of the podium.
<h2>Does a Spanish clean sweep beckon in the men&rsquo;s race?</h2>
Behind both, Marc Tur was second to Martin at Cieza in February, and could ensure a Spanish 1-2-3 - and therefore the team title - at the medal ceremony.
Tur has the notable distinction of being the last winner of the 50km race walk at the European Race Walking Championships, an event which was discontinued in 2021.
Should any of the first three stumble, Germany&rsquo;s Christopher Linke is ready to pounce - and he loves the Spa Park. He won the 20km race walk at the 2017 European Cup in Podebrady to go with three more wins at the annual springtime meeting.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/5bb0ed35-3e45-4c14-a260-b50ff66fec6a?width=1440&amp;height=810" alt="Christopher Linke winning at the European Race Walking Cup Poděbrady 2017 " />
Linke&rsquo;s lifetime best is a mere 2:29:30, but that was good enough for silver behind Lopez at the European Athletics Championships in Munich last year.
Spain and Germany will make it a tough call for the team prize. 
Carl Dohmann and Nathaniel Seiler have both walked sub-2:34:00 this year but Spain can also look to Jos&eacute; Manuel Perez - who has a best of 2:35:22 - if they need a fourth walker to step up. However, the German team has since been weakened by the withdrawal of Jonathan Hilbert due to illness.
As an outsider, Aur&eacute;lien Quinion is a contender.&nbsp;
The Frenchman walked a lifetime best of 1:19:57 for the 20km at Aix-les-Bains in March and at 35km, he holds the national record at 2:28:46 from the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Oregon where he was fourth European behind Massimo Stano, Perseus Karlstrom - both of whom are contesting the 20km race walk in Podebrady - and Lopez.
Behind Perez in the women&rsquo;s 35km, European silver medallist Raquel Gonzalez and Cristina Montesinos - who have lifetime bests of 2:42:27 and 2:50:11 respectively - should augment the Spanish team challenge.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/9ad3bab8-42f3-4dc6-a093-5a0e49d92ea8?width=4362&amp;height=2908" alt="Getty Images 1415156060" />
Italians Sara Vitiello and Lidia Barcella, along with former world and European 50km race walk champion Ines Henriques and Kyriaki Filtisakou from Greece, are also among the entrants who have broken the three hour-barrier in 2023.
<h2>New champions to emerge in the U20 10km races</h2>
The two U20 10km race walk events should provide exciting finishes. There&rsquo;s not a lot between the U20 men&rsquo;s personal bests although Italy&rsquo;s Diego Giampaolo tops the list with 41:47. This gives him a 38 second advantage over Hayrettin Tur Yıldız (42:25) from T&uuml;rkiye.
After that, there&rsquo;s barely a minute between the next seven entrants with a famous name third on season&rsquo;s bests.
Germany&rsquo;s Freddy Weigel, who has a recently set lifetime best of 42:44, has the double-edged sword of his dad&rsquo;s illustrious career hanging over his head. Ronald Weigel won Olympic silver and World Athletics Championship gold along with a batch of other major medals for East Germany in the 1980s.
Giuseppe Disabato is the only one of the leading nine able who will be able to get a second go in the European Race Walking Team Championships as a junior.
The 16-year-old is three years younger than the favourites but still has a very respectable 42:57 to his name from a 10km on home soil in Frosinone in Italy, the same race where Giampaolo set the European U20 lead.
Should they falter, Pablo Rodriguez from Spain (43:06), Filip Krestianko from Slovakia (43:38), Germany&rsquo;s Arvid Kockel (43:44), and two more Turks - Harun Bilir (43:48) and Ozan Bayram (44:03) -&nbsp; will no doubt seize their chance.
The U20 women could even end up in a bunch sprint. Barely a minute separates the first six and only Giada Traina from Italy set her lifetime best outside 2023.
Spain&rsquo;s Aldara Meilan heads the list with 46:41, followed by Giulia Gabriele from Italy (47:12), France&rsquo;s Ana Delahaie (47:19), Traina (47:20), and then Germany&rsquo;s Lena Sonntag (47:28)&nbsp; and Emine Ceylan from T&uuml;rkiye (47:43).
Paul Warburton for European Athletics
&nbsp;

Spain to reign in the 35km race walk events in Podebrady? 

A hat-trick of 20km titles await Sweden&rsquo;s Perseus Karlstrom and Antonella Palmisano from Italy at the 2023 European Race Walking Team Championships on Sunday (21) in Podebrady, Czech Republic.
The European Race Walking Team Championships will be streamed live with expert English-language commentary on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/EuropeanAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Athletics YouTube channel</a> from 7.25am local time (CEST).
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.european-athletics.com/news/reigning-champions-karlstrom-and-palmisano-to-seek-third-20km-race-walk-titles-in-podebrady" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final entries</a></li>
<li><a href="https://podebrady23results.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Live results</a></li>
</ul>
However, the odds are somewhat shorter for the men&rsquo;s European Championship silver medallist than the 2020 Olympic Games winner on the women&rsquo;s side.
Karlstrom is in good form as he goes in search of a historic third title. But Palmisano is coming back from an injury-hit 2022 where her biggest challenge was surgery in September to ease swelling around a sciatic nerve.&nbsp;
Her first race since that golden moment in Sapporo was a 10km race walk in Madrid at the beginning of this month where she registered a modest 45:05.
Considering the 31-year-old&rsquo;s best is 41:28, about a kilometre faster than Madrid, she will need to go a lot quicker around the Spa Park in Podebrady to add a third to victories in 2017 and 2021, the latter a precursor to her gold medal at the Olympics.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/07f34bbc-813e-4d3b-bdd6-b021b274161d?width=4386&amp;height=3351" alt="Getty Images 1014905488" />
Karlstrom has what top Australian coach Brent Vallance calls &lsquo;repeatability' - and has been a pillar of consistency in all major races since his first win in 2019.
The Swede walked a European leading time of 1:19:27 at the Australian Championships in February - only four seconds outside his time at the European Athletics Championships in Munich where he won silver. More recently, he clocked an acceptable 40:04 in Madrid.
If it is not to be Karlstrom, then maybe Italian, Francesco Fortunato, who won the 10km in Madrid against many of his principal European rivals in a fast 38:56. He has walked 1:21:11 this year, and there is nothing like a win against a world-class field to boost confidence.
Behind Karlstrom, Gabriel Bordier from France is the next fastest on the entry-list with 1:20:49 - just 39 seconds shy of his personal best - but two athletes who are yet to contest this distance in 2023 include Olympic champion Massimo Stano from Italy and Spain&rsquo;s Diego Garcia.&nbsp;
The latter has a lifetime best of 1:18:58 and won silver at the European Athletics Championships in Munich last year behind teammate Alvaro Martin who will be stepping up in distance to contest the 35km race walk in Podebrady.
Stano&rsquo;s CV speaks for itself. He set the Italian record 1:17:45 four years ago and backed up his Olympic 20km race walk triumph with gold in the inaugural 35km race walk at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon last July.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/cf02ef76-c8e6-42a1-beb2-06d1f46b7a7b?width=4146&amp;height=2764" alt="Getty Images 1410657526" />
Ominously for the rest of the field, he made his 2023 debut over 10k at Madrid and did so with a decent 39:06 clocking.
In the context of the team race, Spain will be looking to retain their title after finishing second, third and fourth individually in 2021. As well as Garcia, their team also features European U20 champion Paul McGrath who makes his senior debut for Spain in Podebrady.
<h2>Will veteran Ntrismpioti strike again for Greece?</h2>
In the women&rsquo;s race, Stano's compatriot and fellow Olympic champion Palmisano will give it her best shot but at this stage of her comeback, it looks unlikely she will retain her individual title in Podebrady.
And with European leader Maria Perez from Spain focusing on the 35km race walk in Podebrady, this could be the moment for Poland&rsquo;s Katarzyna Zdzieblo to upgrade her many silver medals to gold.&nbsp;
The European and double world silver medallist had to miss her season&rsquo;s opener at the Korzeniowski Challenge in Warsaw last month due to a slight sprain but her sparkling 1:27:31 national record from the World Athletics Championships in Oregon last summer will be at the back of her mind.
But it would be foolish to rule out Antigoni Ntrismpioti. The Greek who helps out at the family restaurant when she can, is ready to serve up another title-winning performance.
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/Cq2yRt9L7aM"]
At 39, the double European champion scored a national record of 1:28:12 in Australia in February - this makes her the fastest entrant on paper on season&rsquo;s best performances - and just as importantly, she has also won in Podebrady before, winning the 35km race walk title two years ago.
However, all three front runners will have Ana Cabecinha to deal with.
She also falls into the veteran category but sprung a surprise in Rio Maior at the end of last month when the Portuguese stayed with a world-class field to finish in 1:29:55 - her first time under 1:30:00 since La Coruna&rsquo;s super-fast race five years ago.&nbsp;
Cabecinha is enjoying a late career resurgence but a relative newcomer in Saskia Feige has made inroads on the world&rsquo;s elite.
The German&rsquo;s lifetime best of 1:28:28 dates back to only 15 April and that time represented a massive improvement of more than a minute on her bronze medal-winning time at the 2022 European Athletics Championships in Munich.
Paul Warburton for European Athletics

Reigning champions Karlstrom and Palmisano seek third 20km race walk titles in Podebrady

Maria Perez might have had a 2022 season to forget having been disqualified at the World and European Athletics Championships but there will be high expectations when she lines up in the 35km race walk at the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on 21 May.
After her annus horribilis, the 2018 European champion has bounced back strongly this year by smashing her national record at the Spanish 20km Race Walking Championships in Cordoba with a world leading time of 1:25:30.
&ldquo;After those setbacks I needed to reset and refresh mentally so I resumed my training in October but I did running instead of walking. It was only by the end of December that I began my usual race walking sessions once I felt psychologically ready after several tough months,&rdquo; said Perez in an exclusive interview with European Athletics.
More than one month on and Perez is still surprised by that clocking, the fastest ever non-Russian time recorded by a European race walker in the history of the event.&nbsp;
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t expect such a quick time at that early stage of the season since we had barely done quality work; I only remember doing a couple of reps sessions (10x1000m and 6x2000m) but I also knew I had that kind of time in my legs after all the hard work done the previous years,&rdquo; she said.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/057017c8-7d20-4e56-965f-8c38963d1cc6?width=3657&amp;height=2438" alt="Getty Images 1408957698 (1)" />
Looking ahead to the European Race Walking Team Championships, statistics play in the favour of the 27-year-old. She came sixth in 2017 and second in 2021 on her previous appearances in the 20km race walk in Podebrady but Perez prefers to take a cautious approach.&nbsp;
&ldquo;To be honest, I&rsquo;m not aiming to win or to smash any records, my two goals in Podebrady are just to romp home and show all the technical work we have done over the last months,&rdquo; said Perez.
The Spaniard is an accomplished performer at both the 20km and 35km race walk distances but Perez explains why she is planning to contest the longer of the two distances in Podebrady.&nbsp;
&ldquo;After my good performance in C&oacute;rdoba we decided to work on my stamina and mileage as I plan to double up at the World Athletics Championships this summer. I am averaging over 125 kilometres per week with some peaks of 135 kilometres at the most,&rdquo; said Perez, who is the European record-holder at the longer distance with 2:39:16 time set last year.
The upcoming European Race Walking Team Championships will be Perez&rsquo;s fourth race over the longer distance but her first internationally in an event which only made its debut on the major championships programme last summer.
&ldquo;To be honest, I haven&rsquo;t got any hint on what type of race we&rsquo;ll have in Podebrady, let&rsquo;s see how the race develops,&rdquo; said Perez.
&ldquo;We shouldn&rsquo;t forget that it&rsquo;s a team championship so the primary goal will be to win the gold medal for my country alongside my teammates but Italy, Greece [gold and silver medallists in 2021], Ukraine and France have strong specialists,&rdquo; said Perez.
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/CqbM0cRrX8Q"]
Perez will meet up with them again in just over a week on a circuit which is of her liking. &ldquo;It&rsquo;s a beautiful circuit, quite broad except for the final stages when it narrows; in addition there are a lot of trees in the park which give shade for much of the race. I really enjoy walking in Podebrady,&rdquo; she said.
<h2>"Fiercest rival but also the best teammate"</h2>
Unlike Perez, her compatriot Raquel Gonzalez enjoyed the season of her life in the 35km race walk in 2022 with a fifth-place finish at the World Athletics Championships and a silver medal at the 2022 European Athletics Championships in Munich.
&ldquo;I couldn&rsquo;t pick one performance over the other; to be fifth at a world level is amazing but a medal is a medal and that&rsquo;s what every athlete fights for. After those results I feel more ambitious,&rdquo; said Gonzalez, who was also crowned women's Spanish Athlete of the Year for 2022.
<img src="https://assets.european-athletics.com/6c1d2e19-f008-467e-8009-30f0e1cea579?width=3459&amp;height=5188" alt="Getty Images 1415149026" />
Boosted by such a brilliant campaign, Gonzalez spent over one month early this year in Australia &ndash; Canberra and Perisher Valley &ndash; to take part in the Supernova 7 training camp alongside other elite walkers such as Greece&rsquo;s double European champion Antigoni Ntrismpioti who will contest the 20km race walk in Podebrady.
&ldquo;The topic of the experiment was to study the altitude training effect on the haemoglobin of female walkers; we also followed a very specific diet program, combining a high energy intake over the first two weeks and a low energy intake for the last week,&rdquo; explained Gonzalez.
The 33-year-old is looking forward to returning to Podebrady two years after a performance which left her with mixed emotions.
"Today I have a very positive memory as we managed the 20km gold medal as a team but believe me when I tell you, I had a bittersweet feeling for some time as I missed an individual medal and also a lifetime best for barely one second,&rdquo; recalls Gonzalez, who came fourth in 1:28:37, tantalisingly close to her lifetime best which dates back to 2014.
Thinking about the upcoming 2023 edition, the Madrid-based walker said: &ldquo;We have a very powerful squad and definitely we&rsquo;ll go for team gold, that&rsquo;s for sure&rdquo;.&nbsp;
Asked on whether her fellow Spaniard Maria Perez should be regarded as her main opponent individually, Gonzalez says adamantly: &ldquo;Of course, Maria will be both the fiercest rival but also the best teammate&rdquo;.&nbsp;
Having raced over the shorter distances - 5km, 10km, 20km - so far this campaign, Podebrady will mark Gonzalez&rsquo;s first appearance over 35km distance this season but far from hesitating on her outcome, she&rsquo;s fully determined to perform well.
The Spaniard boasts a 2:42:27 career best for the event but she&rsquo;s reluctant to reply when asked what kind of clocking we can expect from her on this occasion.
"That would be giving advantage to my rivals!" she laughs.&nbsp;
Emeterio Vailente for European Athletics

After contrasting fortunes in 2022, Perez and Gonzalez to join forces for Spain over 35km in Podebrady

With 10 days to go, final entries for the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady on 21 May have been finalised and are available to view.
<ul>
<li><a href="https://downloads.european-athletics.com/e0ab4541-c4d3-40e6-835b-dddde8f10a82/ERWC 2023 - Final Entries Athletes List By Event and SB.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final entries by event (by season&rsquo;s best)</a></li>
<li><a href="https://downloads.european-athletics.com/831cad7a-9e92-4f5e-bd99-2a09654ac1d3/ERWC 2023 - Final Entries Athletes List By Event.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Final entries by event (by country)</a></li>
</ul>
The final entries are headed by the three gold medallists from the race walking disciplines at the Munich 2022 European Athletics Championships.
Greece&rsquo;s Antigoni Ntrismpioti, who swept the 20km and 35km race walk titles in Munich last summer, will be concentrating on the shorter of the two distances in Podebrady next weekend.
By contrast, the men&rsquo;s European 20km race walk champion Alvaro Martin from Spain steps up to contest the 35km in Podebrady where he joins forces with Miguel Angel Lopez, the winner of the inaugural 35km race walk at the 2022 European Athletics Championships.
Other standout names on the entry-list include Italy&rsquo;s two Olympic champions from Tokyo 2020 in Massimo Stano and Antonella Palmisano. Stano followed up his victory in the 20km race walk with gold in the 35km race walk at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
By contrast, Palmisano is on the comeback trail from injury and illness and the European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady represents her first major competition since winning gold in Tokyo 2020. Can she win individual gold for a third time in Podebrady?
Likewise, Sweden&rsquo;s Perseus Karlstrom will be challenging for a record third successive gold medal in the men&rsquo;s 20km race walk. Now 33, Karlstrom leads the entry-list by more than one minute with a season&rsquo;s best of 1:19:27.&nbsp;
In-depth previews on the upcoming action in Podebrady will be published on the European Athletics website on Wednesday and Thursday next week.&nbsp;
The European Race Walking Team Championships will be streamed live through the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@EuropeanAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">European Athletics YouTube channel</a> on 21 May and will be accompanied by expert English-language commentary.
There will also be comprehensive coverage of the championships on the European Athletics website and across our social media channels.&nbsp;

European and Olympic champions headline final entries for Podebrady 2023

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