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and the struggle continued until his death
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Jakub Cervenka has redesigned four holes at Golf Club Poděbrady in the Czech Republic
The project will see the creation of new first
Cervenka has also undertaken some renumbering of holes to have smoother transitions in the routing
Jakub Cervenka of CZGDA is under way with a four-hole redesign project at Golf Club Poděbrady
located west of Prague in the Czech Republic
third and eighteenth holes as well as developing new practice facilities
Seeding is to be finished this autumn with the opening of the new holes and golf academy planned for May 2021
The course’s origins date back to 1961 when Prague local Karel Havelka came up for a plan to create some golf holes for the sports club TJ Slovan Poděbrady
identified an area of floodplain forests east of Poděbrady in which to build the layout
The pair were joined by a team of landscape architects to carry out their plan
the course had expanded to six holes and then to nine in 1974
only seven holes were built from the first nine
although the drawings included a complete eighteen,” said Cervenka
It was taken on by Golf Club Poděbrady in 1993 and seven years later
“Today’s situation is the result of various modifications
changes and completion of holes during the course’s existence,” said Cervenka
“The biggest change was the completion of the second nine.”
Cervenka decided a redesign was the best path for the club
“We decided to redesign the course with a new
aesthetically different coat,” he said
“The existing Poděbrady is an inland course and must remain so after the redesign
Earth movement will be minimised to the bare minimum so that my own design principles are followed
as well as clearly visible bunkers with an attractive
which create a strategic situation for players.”
Cervenka’s redesign has seen the creation of a short par-four first hole
followed by a par three and then a dog leg par four
“I always want each tee to appeal to the player with two main sensations
It should capture the view of the individual game elements
including nicely open and interestingly designed bunkers
the second moment should see players think about how they will progress through the hole
and which game management to choose.”
something that is a feature throughout the course
“I chose the concept of a richly bunker-protected green,” said Cervenka
“The player is placed in a situation in which they have to think and concentrate on the choice of club
the shape of the shot and the correct target line
as if locked in view from the tees by three bunkers
We have to make sure that the edge of the front bunkers is very visible from the tee
it is necessary that the green is visible for players.”
Cervenka says the redesigned third hole completes a gradual introduction of a ‘new Poděbrady’ style
Some of the challenges he identifies include opening views for shots from the back tees as well as shaping both sides of the fairway so that balls roll towards the centre for an easier approach to the green
The next phase of the project will include work on the stream
The redesigned holes have a more modern feel to them
and Cervenka plans to continue with this look for future phases
I will try to preserve the uniqueness of the Poděbrady landscape and to highlight and support its uniqueness with newly conceived game elements,” said Cervenka
Greens will be larger so that there are plenty of options for pin positions with bunkers of “a fairly good size” too
so they are visible and of strategic interest
new practice facilities have been designed
“The area will offer players three putting greens,” said Cervenka
“The smallest one is 300 square metres and is near the first tees
we offer players a large putting green – almost 1,000 square metres – with mild undulations
interestingly set between the path and driving tees
with the surface area perfectly flat.”
There will also be a chipping area that includes a large green and two bunkers and the driving range will offer target greens
Maria Perez broke the women’s 35km race walk world record* by an impressive 29 seconds to win at the European Race Walking Team Championships
a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold event
The Spaniard eclipsed the record set by Peru's double world champion Kimberly Garcia in Dudince in March to break the tape in 2:37:15
She becomes the first Spanish athlete to set an athletics world record since Francisco Fernandez broke the 10,000m race walk record in 2008
"It is a nice feeling to finish the race and the time is a big reward," said Perez
"I did not think of any time or any special target before the start
the record time was definitely not my goal today
I am happy to do my best and I am glad to see that race walk can be attractive and can attract such great crowds like in Podebrady."
Perez's gold medal was never in doubt from the first 200m of the race and she strolled home to eclipse second place by more than eight minutes around the 1km park course
she was leading many of the men following a combined race start
Perez was lapping some of the back markers in the women’s field
Chasing the Spaniard – if you can call it that – were her teammates Raquel Gonzalez and Cristina Montesinos
A lap later it was 59 seconds and growing to widen just about every one of the remaining 28 laps
Everyone else was more than two minutes in arrears
Perez reached 10km in 46:17 – 1:31 ahead of her two compatriots – with Curiazzi dropping off the back by seven seconds
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 2021 bronze medallist was clearly out of sorts as Perez forged on
the leader had lapped fourth-placed Curiazzi
She then went through 20km in 1:30:59 – a time that would have placed her sixth in the women’s 20km event in Podebrady – and another kilometre later she had lapped the entire field
"I had difficult seasons behind me and I focused on this competition very seriously," added Perez
"We worked on technique and I wanted to show that I am well prepared
The technique was still not the best but I am working on it
Gonzalez had opened up an 11-second lead over Montesinos; the latter’s face resigned to third at best
But Montesinos gave it one spirited last go over the final lap
and closed the gap to finish second in 2:45:58 to Gonzalez’s 2:45:42
the performance was a PB of more than four minutes
while her fellow Italian Nicole Colombi was fifth in 2:52:13 - yet a another re-write of a personal best
The men’s 35km winner was no surprise
Alvaro Martin was head and shoulders above the rest and led from gun to tape
The men's 35km race walk podium at the European Race Walking Team Championships (© Podebrady 2023 LOC / European Athletics)
Martin set a Spanish record of 2:25:58 to eclipse the mark of the man who finished third
Podebrady favourite Christopher Linke claimed silver and a German record of 2:27:05
who spent a lot of the race in second place
was forced to settle for fourth having spent time in the penalty area that killed his medal chances with a wave of a judge’s hand
by ticking off laps in a metronomic 4:10 or thereabouts in a pleasant 14 degrees that was to rise to 21 by the finish
The Spaniard had a lead of 20 metres after just one lap from Quinion
with a string of athletes further back and the entire field strung out over 200m
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
with the lead having grown another seven seconds
a group of eight athletes headed by a second German – Carl Dohmann – were battling for places
Quinion gave it a go to close the advantage
and forged a nine-second gap back to Lopez and Linke
He improved it over the next 2km to also cut the deficit slightly on Martin
the leader went through 20km in a world-class 1:22:56
and the next two a further 36 seconds down
The French athlete was eating into Martin’s lead
But it was all to unravel a few minutes later when the judges sent Quinion to the penalty area for the regulation 3:30 that effectively ended his quest for the podium
a new battle for second place was taking shape
Linke creviced a five-second gap over the 2022 European champion and improved again slightly to make sure of a second place to add to his gold from 2017 at 20km
A fascinating race finally fell the way of 39-year-old Antigoni Ntrismpioti
Antigoni Ntrismpioti and Antonella Palmisano in the 20km race walk at the European Race Walking Team Championships (© Podebrady 2023 LOC / European Athletics)
The double European champion proved that age is no barrier when she made a winning move with a lap to go
the Greek athlete got the better of Olympic champion Antonella Palmisano
who herself defied expectations to take silver
the Italian’s last-minute charge still allowed her to grab a national flag and finish just two seconds down
albeit as a result of Ntrismpioti joyously waving to all around her
Portugal’s Ana Cabecinha was able to celebrate a major medal with bronze and a second 2023 sub-1:30:00 in what has become an Indian summer for another 39-year-old
were rewarded for their willingness to take on the pace and finished in fourth and fifth
while another early leader – Clemence Beretta from France – finished sixth
The heat had risen to 22 degrees by the time 43 athletes – many wearing caps – took to the start line
the pace increased to four seconds quicker two laps later
The major shock was that world and European silver medallist Zdzieblo was clearly struggling five seconds in arrears and was already going backwards
Ntrismpioti wisely joined the majority by donning a cap during lap four
with Meryem Bekmez from Turkiye and Italy’s Valentina Trapletti joining the phalanx at the front
The leaders went through 5km 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
Olyanovska and Sobchuk pushed on during lap nine and reduced the pack to seven with Trapletti literally feeling the heat
with Ntrismpioti composed enough to have a quick word to those around her
There was only four seconds of difference a circuit later
though all but the Ukrainians were walking single file
The next four-plus minutes saw a momentary splintering of the lead group
Cabecinha and Feige trying to hang on to their coattails
Beretta surprised many with her brave challenge
but she too was done when it came to hopes of a medal
two groups of three became six again barely three minutes later
Palmisano showed in the centre of the group and she was a single second ahead at 14km
she had endured an injury ravaged 2022 with a solitary 10km last month her only race since glorious gold at the Tokyo Olympics
while Sobchuk was staring through sunglasses at a group of four moving away
that soon became three when Cabecinha began to struggle
Zdzieblo could only look on as the leaders lapped her with 3km to go
Slowly Ntrismpioti turned the screw with only the Olympic champion for company as Olyanovska finally had to let go
Palmisano was gulping air halfway through the penultimate lap
and the Greek athlete’s sideways glance showed she knew it as she moved away for victory
the winner’s name might translate as lucky
but there was nothing fortuitous about the best win in Francesco Fortunato's career
The Italian grafted from first to last and thoroughly deserved his gold medal
Francesco Fortunato and Perseus Karlstrom in 20km race walk action in Podebrady (© Podebrady 2023 LOC / European Athletics)
The 28-year-old was fifth in last year’s European Championships
and fifth last time in Podebrady two years ago
but it was a 38:56 victory against a world-class field at 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 go again to pass Perseus Karlstrom
The Italian's eventual 1:18:59 – a massive improvement – even allowed him to half stop and gather an Italian flag in the last 50m
the hottest time of the day greeted 48 athletes
Olympic and world champion Massimo Stano set off like he planned to end this early as a competition
He stopped the clock for the first kilometre at 3:54
Karlstrom and nine others were already surging ahead of a strung-out field
It was 7:47 next time around and Stano was three seconds ahead of his Italian teammate
Already a stellar cast of athletes were eight seconds in arrears - hardly surprising given the 1:17:30 pace
The clock showed 11:42 for 3km and there was no let-up in the charge
with the gap to third and Karlstrom extended to 12 seconds after four laps
Stano passed the clock at 19:34 and Fortunato was holding steady three seconds back
but Karlstrom had gone out to a deficit of 17 seconds
the leaders were already lapping back markers
and what remained of the group from a lightning start were another 10 seconds further back
no thanks to a relatively slow 3:59 for the leader
The chasing Swede could clearly see both leaders
and slowly started to close the gap to a more manageable 13 seconds
Fortunato had defiantly drawn abreast of Stano
and the gap to Karlstrom was now only seven seconds
Alberto Amezcua and Paul McGrath were all inside 40 minutes
Third place had no choice but to go wide to pass the lapped athletes but he was still gaining
by 12km it was a trio contesting which medal they might win
not least because Karlstrom had just reeled off a 3:53 lap
He fell off the back almost instantly and by 13km he was eight seconds behind the duelling duo
And duel they did as Fortunato pushed on with a 3:56 lap to forge a six-second lead by 15km (59:09)
That was all that was needed to decide the podium
he hung on for third place and a time of 1:20:07
which in other circumstances would have been a success
and his Spanish teammate McGrath came home fifth in 1:21:15
Veli-Matti Partanen showed that persistence pays off with a PB of 1:21:26 for sixth place
two-time world medallist Joao Vieira deserves special mention for 10th place and a time of 1:22:08
barely two minutes shy of a PB he set 19 years ago
*Subject to the usual ratification procedure
Caio Bonfim and Valeria Ortuno took top honours and led a number of athletes under the World Athletics Championships qualifying standards at the Podebrady Walking meeting – the first Gold level event in this year’s World Athletics Race Walking Tour – on Saturday (2)
moved away from his rivals in the closing kilometres to equal the meeting record of 1:18:54 and triumph ahead of Sweden’s 2019 world bronze medallist Perseus Karlstrom – who had set that meeting record last year – and Ireland’s European U23 silver medallist David Kenny in the men's 20km race
Mexico’s Ortuno made her break earlier on in the women’s 20km race and maintained that momentum
recording 1:29:25 to finish half a minute clear of Germany’s Saskia Feige and Ecuador’s Johana Ordonez
As well as kicking off the Gold calendar in the 2022 World Athletics Race Walking Tour
Saturday’s meeting also marked the 90th anniversary of the race walk competition in the Czech spa town
Just four weeks after his 35km win at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships Muscat 22
Karlstrom returned to Podebrady to defend his 20km title
with wins in 2020 and 2016 also featuring on his CV
was looking to go one better than his runner-up spot at the South American Race Walking Championships in Lima in February
and build on his eighth-place finish over 35km in Muscat
Karlstrom was part of the lead group that passed 5km in 19:52 and 10km in 39:40
Bonfim had been biding his time a few seconds back off the front of the pack but was to the fore as 7km was reached in 27:53
with Bonfim and Karlstrom joined by Kenny and Ecuador’s Brian Pintado through the 10km mark
with Kenny and Bonfim together ahead of Karlstrom
Karlstrom was the next to fall back but he battled on
determined not to let Kenny and Bonfim out of his sight – the leaders passing 15km in 59:24
As Bonfim moved away over the next kilometre
Karlstrom caught Kenny and they looked locked in battle for the runner-up spot
Bonfim was 18 seconds ahead at 17km – 1:07:13 to 1:07:31 – and had stretched his lead to 28 seconds with two kilometres to go
Bonfim was unchallenged as he secured success in 1:18:54
just seven seconds off his own national record recorded in La Coruna in 2019
while Karlstrom managed to hold off Kenny – 1:19:42 to 1:19:44 – with the Irish walker letting out a roar as he crossed the finish line and saw his time
having taken more than three minutes off his PB
Pintado finished fourth in a PB of 1:19:47
while Spain’s Alberto Amezcua joined them in dipping under 80 minutes with 1:19:58 for fifth
A total of 12 athletes finished under the 1:21:00 entry standard for July’s World Athletics Championships Oregon22
Ortuno had been joined by Spain’s Olympic fourth-place finisher Maria Perez at the front of a six-strong group that passed the 5km point in 22:16
But over the next few kilometres Perez’s red cards resulted in a two-minute penalty and she was later disqualified
That left Ortuno to do battle with her compatriot Alegna Gonzalez
the fourth-place finisher at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Muscat who was fifth
When Gonzalez dropped out a couple of kilometres later
although her closest challengers had closed the gap to five seconds
and was 10 seconds ahead of Ordonez at 15km (1:06:43)
Feige was fiercely giving chase and was four seconds off Ordonez with a kilometre to go
Ortuno had a clear path to victory with her win secured in 1:29:25
but half a minute back was a competitive clash for the runner up spot
Feige pipped Ordonez by just a single second as they clocked respective PBs of 1:29:57 and 1:29:58
Italy’s Valentina Trapletti finished fourth in 1:30:49
while Czech Republic’s Eliska Martinkova (1:30:53 PB) and Tereza Durdiakova (1:31:09) were fifth and sixth on home soil – the top five all under the entry standard for Oregon
After racing in Podebrady for the fourth time and claiming her first win
First place and the time for the World Championships in Oregon
it’s amazing for me.” Despite the cold conditions
Czech Republic claimed top spot ahead of France and Italy
A number of athletes in the U20 races are targeting this year’s World Athletics U20 Championships Cali 22 and that resulted in some competitive action and fast times
Mexico’s 16-year-old Angel Vazquez Montes improved his PB to 42:15 to win the U20 men’s 10km race walk ahead of Czech Republic’s Adam Zajicek (42:19) and Jaromir Moravek (42:36)
while the U20 women’s title was claimed by Mexico’s 17-year-old Karla Ximena Serrano
who clocked 45:20 to take exactly two minutes off her previous best
Finland’s Heta Veikkola was second in 46:02 and Costa Rica’s Sharon Lisseth Herrera Soto third in 46:04
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-race-walking-tour/calendar-results/7174264/result" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>
Matsunaga and Sonoda secure 20km race walk su..
Montag breaks Oceanian 20km race walk record ..
Perez and Lopez win 35km race walk titles in ..
Thanks to its quintessential small-town vibe along with a number of striking vestiges that hint at a once-deep medieval influence
Poděbrady has long been considered a great primer for the Czech spa town circuit
At just 40 km (and a direct train connection) from Prague
whose healing mineral water taps are open – free of charge – to the public
is a popular day-trip location.&nbsp;&nbsp;
The spa specializes in treating and rehabilitating cardiovascular diseases as well as championing heart-healthy lifestyle choices and everyday wellness needs
Poděbrady’s numerous cycle paths along the Elbe
are well-traveled by tourists and spa guests alike
acting as tangible reminders of the town’s motto – “Poděbrady
While many Czech spa towns are located in the country’s mountainous border regions
Poděbrady’s proximity to the capital has been one of its biggest selling points for the past 100 years as its mineral waters and well-targeted treatment regimen have continued to build a fiercely loyal following.&nbsp;&nbsp;
Chariclea is equipped with a 20-meter swimming pool
a sauna world and wellness center and a luxurious steak restaurant that can be enjoyed by both hotel guests and the general public.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
says client numbers are quickly returning to their pre-pandemic levels
he anticipates the town will be filling with a steady stream of visitors
popping by for an afternoon massage at the resort or to take in one of the many cultural events planned for the coming months.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
“There is always something happening in Poděbrady – concerts
It’s a great base for trips,” says Odcházel
While the town itself dates back to the Middle Ages
the springs weren’t discovered until the early 1900s
known as “Poděbradka,” is high in iron and carbon dioxide content
making it ideal for therapeutic and medicinal bathing – and drinking
The distinctly metallic-tasting water can be freely acquired in its pure form at one of the 12 taps that dot the town’s central park as well as on the shelves of nearly all the main supermarket chains in the Czech Republic
one of the town’s most prominent features is the stately Poděbrady Castle
the purported birthplace of George of Poděbrady
which can be admired as you drive into town along the D11 motorway
The fortress was reconstructed several times over the centuries as it was passed from one aristocratic family to another
it is one of the town’s most visited museums
is lined with stunning Renaissance and Baroque houses; the former town hall
Another key landmark of this charming Central Bohemia town is the spa park
adorned with a flower clock that ticks off the hour with the aid of a miniature garden dwarf and home to the modern Libenský Colonnade
the glass colonnade was constructed over a mineral spring – whose carbonated waters you can sample on the spot – and named in honor of Václav Libenský
The celebrated Czech physician established an institute dedicated to treating cardiovascular diseases in Poděbrady
laying the foundation for what would be the resort’s lasting renown.&nbsp;
deputy chairman of Lázně Poděbrady’s board of directors
says one big trend the spa has noticed with its short-term stay clients is that they come not just for treatment
but also for the resort’s wellness and cuisine offering – a mix that has brought in a sharp uptick in B2B clientele
“Large companies like Škoda Auto are sending thousands of employees each year for regeneration,” Odcházel says
“We are happy to be setting trends that spa treatments or rehabilitation is not only for old people or people with disease,” Odcházel adds
“Visiting a spa resort should be part of a yearly regeneration of health and mind
This article was written in cooperation with <a href="https://bit.ly/43IjHkc" data-cwid="1902510" data-cwiad="82053" data-cu="https://bit.ly/43IjHkc" target="_blank">Lázně Poděbrady, a.s.</a> Read more about our partner content policies <a href="https://www.expats.cz/czech-news/article/advertising-policies#partner-content" data-cwid="1902510" data-cwiad="82053" data-cu="https://www.expats.cz/czech-news/article/advertising-policies#partner-content" target="_blank">here</a>
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The nine-hole Dan Yates putting course is a reversible Himalayas-style layout
A $33 million project has also seen the opening of a new clubhouse
par three course and revisable nine-hole course
A new putting course designed by Jerry Pate has opened for play at Bobby Jones Golf Course in Atlanta
The reversible, nine-hole Himalayas-style layout joins the par-three Cupp Links course and a reversible nine-hole course &ndash; the last design of the <a href="https://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/content/leading-figures-throughout-golf-pay-tribute-to-bob-cupp">late Bob Cupp</a> &ndash; at the public golf facility
The putting course was named in honour of Dan Yates
He was a captain of the Georgia Tech golf team and inductee to the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame
including the inaugural event in 1934 to watch his brother Charles play
and on two occasions when his son Danny competed
and the tee markers on the greens will also serve as drink holders for players
&ldquo;The Dan Yates Putting Course is an incredible addition to the golf and overall entertainment experience at Bobby Jones Golf Course,&rdquo; said general manager Brian Conley
&ldquo;The putting course offers guests of all ages and skill levels an opportunity to test their accuracy and hone their putting stroke in a new and exciting way.&rdquo;
The facility&rsquo;s renovation project was led by the Bobby Jones Golf Course Foundation
a non-profit organisation funded by local citizens and companies
The foundation raised over $33 million for the project
which has also seen the opening of the new Murray Golf House
The new clubhouse will serve as the home of the Georgia State Golf Association and Georgia section of the Professional Golfers&rsquo; Association of America (PGA)
as well as the first physical location of the Georgia Golf Hall of Fame
<a href="https://www.golfcoursearchitecture.net/content/the-bobby-jones-golf-course-a-shared-legacy">Read more about the dual legacy of the renovated Bobby Jones golf course</a>
we have built a foundation of a very unique golf course
and added a host of premier amenities that reframe the golf experience and make it more accessible and more enjoyable,&rdquo; says Marty Elgison
&ldquo;We are delighted that the course has been so widely embraced by the city and the broader community
This new facility has helped introduce new people to the game and has provided the city with a public golf experience that&rsquo;s never been available to the current generation.&rdquo;
The latest IAAF Race Walking Challenge race saw Europe&rsquo;s finest return to Podebrady
on Sunday (21) for the second time in just over a month
Following April&rsquo;s European Athletics Permit meeting
the beautiful shaded park course in the spa town 50 kilometres east of Prague proved the perfect place for fast racing &ndash; and there were none faster than Antonella Palmisano
The Italian built on her 41:57.27 for 10,000m in Orvieto last month to win the European Race Walking Cup as well as pile up points in the challenge
The 25-year-old is now considered a favourite for the IAAF World Championships London 2017 in August
the race was as good as over before it began
The foregone conclusion that Palmisano would dominate proved sound &ndash; and dominate she did
the Italian piled it on and at halfway she was already 27 seconds ahead of a group of four
Her fourth-place finish at last year's Olympics confirmed her status as Italy&rsquo;s current top female race walker and she has since gone from strength to strength
But this was her first senior title win after coming to light at the 2010 IAAF World Race Walking Cup where she was a surprise winner of the U20 title
She was lapping backmarkers before the fourth one-kilometre lap
and her personal best of 1:27:51 was clearly in danger coming up to the last 50 metres
clutched at a supporter&rsquo;s Italian flag with &lsquo;Forza Antonella&rsquo; on it
picked it up and strolled to the line in 1:27:57 to miss re-writing her best by six seconds
Portugal were looking strong with both Ana Cabecinha and Ines Henriques in contention for medals
the latter&rsquo;s dream was dashed just shy of 15 kilometres when she incurred the judges' displeasure and got shown the dreaded red disc
This left Cabecinha and race surprise Laura Garcia-Caro from Spain in the medal frame
The Portuguese dug on vast reserves to inch ahead
with Ukraine&rsquo;s Nadiya Borovska chasing Garcia-Caro whose 1:29:32 personal best dates back to the last European Cup on home soil at Murcia in 2015
but was handed a fine bronze medal to take home instead
was in effect race walking solo despite lapping athletes all the time
She got a second wind to pass a tiring Borovska and claim fourth
with Spain&rsquo;s Maria Perez saving the best to last to accelerate and bag a PB by 54 seconds
Palmisano looked surprised when told she had missed out on a PB
but quickly recovered to say it was &lsquo;unimportant&rsquo;
&ldquo;was having the flag in my hand to win my first major senior race.&rdquo;
but believes she too has found a second wind
&ldquo;The training for five months after the Olympic Games have been very slow
but I am getting back to normal now," she said
"It is a different year and I am looking forward to London and the World Championships.&rdquo;
Christopher Linke aptly demonstrated his love for Podebrady
Three first places and a second in the past two years on this course suggests the German is home from home
The only problem the 1.90m tall athlete encountered en route to gold was ducking under a sponsor&rsquo;s sign every lap too high for everyone else to reach
And it looks as if the heady heights of major wins to follow are also on the horizon for a race walker who first appeared on the world scene as an U20 athlete in another spa town more than 10 years ago
No one got close to the 28-year-old once he broke away at eight kilometres and continued to turn a gap into a chasm
but with plenty of shade to stave of the worst of the fierce sun
the first four one-kilometre laps were knocked off with metronomic precision in 4:04 by a group of 30-plus
the pace had increased slightly and then Linke really got into his massive stride to end the contest for top of the podium
The race for the places became a drawn out affair between France&rsquo;s Kevin Campion
world champion Miguel Angel Lopez and Perseus Karlstrom from Sweden
After a disappointing 2016 by his standards
Lopez injected the speed needed to get away from his pursuers at 17km to claim silver
and the chief judge&rsquo;s disqualification disc decided bronze when Campion was removed
Great Britain&rsquo;s Tom Bosworth felt the heat in all senses as he struggled to ignore a hip injury
but fourth was a decent return as he builds for the World Championships
but only a few seconds outside his PB as Lithuania also claimed a women's team bronze
&ldquo;I have one of the best coaches in the world in Ronald Weigel (1987 world silver medallist)
It is a great motivation and there is a saying which says that when you train with the best
"I love it here in Podebrady even though it has been a hard year," he added
I went at my own pace and I really enjoyed it
The 50km went to form with Ivan Banzeruk playing the waiting game and striking at 38km to take an unassailable lead
The Ukrainian came into the race with a 3:44:49 personal best
and teammate Igor Glavan picked up the theme to up the pace and claim a deserved silver medal
Michele Antonelli was close to four minutes behind Teodorico Caporaso at one stage
but it was the former who came through for a place on the podium
Antonelli's conservatism was a case of necessity
he was forced to rein in to avoid the dreaded third
transgressions worked in a race walker&rsquo;s favour
Caporaso was 54 seconds ahead and extended his lead still further
Banzeruk claimed it was hard going after 45km
but the threatened Antonelli not only got a medal
Kim and Wang dominate Asian 20km Race Walking..
Lu and Bonfim win Taicang Race Walk Challenge..
Arevalo and Gonzalez shine as records fall at..
Czech Republic’s rising home star Anezka Drahotova
and Slovakia’s experienced Matej Toth took the honours at the Podebrady 2014 meeting on Saturday (12)
the eighth of this year’s 12 events which count towards the 2014 IAAF Race Walking Challenge
who coincidentally clinched their wins in the 17th kilometre of their 20km races in the in central Bohemian spa town
also definitely pressed their medal potential at the 2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup
which will be held in the Chinese city of Taicang on 3-4 May
Getting the biggest cheers was obviously Drahotova
the first Czech woman to win in Podebrady after Lucie Pelantova in 2010
with the latter finishing second in the Czech championship on this occasion
A leading group of five was established in the early stages of the women’s race
with the Prague Half Marathon still in her legs from last Saturday
and unlike her performance at last summer’s IAAF World Championships when she audaciously led the field for more than half the race
she was content to wait in the pack and letting her rivals to make the pace
Drahotova decided that was her moment to put her foot on the accelerator and made her successful attack
uncorking a 4:16 kilometre after the pace had oscillated between 4:28 and the low 4:30s
Further fast laps of the 1km course followed with her clocking 4:11
4:19 and 4:16 for the final three circuits
Although it was more than a minute outside her national record and 2014 world junior leading time of 1:28:13 from Lugano
it was still a solid performance form the Prague University Sports Club athlete
especially in the relatively warm conditions for the time of year
“It wasn’t that easy as it might look like,” said the 18-year-old winner
“But I was really surprised what a solid pace I could keep
My coach (Ivo Pitak) was slowing me down at the beginning to go for a more tactical race
This was a good test before European Championships
and I want to thank the Lithuanian (Aidietyte) Neringa
I could speed up in last kilometres and I was trying to set a good time for the organisers
I am happy to bring them time under 1:30 and win as well,” added Drahotova
The win saw Drahotova move up to equal fourth in the IAAF Race Walking Challenge standings with 10 points from her two races in the series
Her next goal is to win the junior 10km in Taicang
and the 2013 European junior champion in the 10,000m race walk on the track will be one of the favourites for the title
Brazil’s Erica de Sena hung on for second place
exactly a minute and just under 250 metres behind Drahotova
She improved her national record for the second time in a week
she held the Brazilian national record with 1:31:53
but she raced to a time of 1:31:22 in the Portuguese event in Rio Maior last Saturday and improved that mark by another 39 seconds in Podebrady
make Matej Tóth one of the most successful competitors in history of the event
The 2010 IAAF World Race Walking Cup 50km winner also decided that the 17th kilometre was a good moment to make a push for home and he managed to put daylight between himself and Poland’s Rafal Fedaczynski
his last opponent in the fight for another victory
Matej crossed the line in 1:20:00; just shy of his recent personal best of 1:19:48 set across the border on home soil in Dudince last month
“It was a bit tougher than last time in Dudince,” admitted Toth
but it was good preparation for the World Cup and I’m happy for the win
The 17th kilometre is a good point to attack
because the last kilometre can always be a danger; even a walker with weaker PB can do a strong finish
“I tried to speed up a bit and Rafal couldn’t respond
this race is matter of my heart and I always like to come back
I saw world class walking for the first time here
when I was 14 at the 1997 World Cup; that’s when my dreams about finishing on top of the podium started
and now those dreams are coming true,” he added with a smile
The win also took Toth to the top of the 2014 IAAF Race Walking Challenge standings with 16 points
Toth is going to Taicang to do the 20km and then he will prepare for the 50km event at the European Championships
Fedaczynski took second place just 18 seconds behind Toth in 1:20:18 while Ukraine’s Andriy Kovenko
edged away from the other candidates for a place on the podium in the last three kilometres for third in 1:20:26
just six seconds outside his recent personal best
Slovakia’s Miroslav Uradník and Italy’s Noemi Stella won the junior 10km races with times of 42:01 and 47:11 respectively
Women&rsquo;s world 1500m record3:49.11 Faith Kipyegon (KEN) Florence 2 June 2023
Women&rsquo;s world 5000m record14:05.20 Faith Kipyegon (KEN) Paris 9 June 2023
Men&rsquo;s world 3000m steeplechase record7:52.11 Lamecha Girma (ETH) Paris 9 June 2023
Women&rsquo;s world 35km race walk record2:37:15 Maria Perez (ESP) Podebrady 21 May 2023
World records set this season by Faith Kipyegon
Lamecha Girma and Maria Perez have been ratified
Kenya&rsquo;s Kipyegon has achieved three world records since June and two of those marks &ndash; in the women&rsquo;s 1500m and 5000m &ndash; are now officially in the record books
Her women&rsquo;s mile record set in Monaco on 21 July is pending ratification
The first of Kipyegon&rsquo;s world records was set at the Golden Gala
the two-time world and Olympic champion ran 3:49.11 to break the women&rsquo;s world 1500m record of 3:50.07 that had been set by Ethiopia&rsquo;s Genzebe Dibaba in Monaco on 17 July 2015
&ldquo;There&rsquo;s still more to come,&rdquo; said Kipyegon after taking down the eight-year-old record
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m still working on running faster than that
I&rsquo;m really thankful today that I managed to run 3:49 and I&rsquo;m still heading towards beautiful races in the rest of the season.&rdquo;
Faith Kipyegon breaks the world 5000m record in Paris (&copy; Getty Images)
Just one week later she raced at the Meeting de Paris
While her original aim might not have been the world record of 14:06.62 set by Ethiopia&rsquo;s Letesenbet Gidey in Valencia on 7 October 2020
running 14:05.20 in just her third ever race at the distance
she hit the bell in 13:04.1 and covered the final lap in 61.1 seconds for a 1.42-second improvement on Gidey&rsquo;s mark
&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t think about the world record
I don&rsquo;t know how I made it,&rdquo; said a surprised Kipyegon
I just ran after Gidey &ndash; she is an amazing lady.&rdquo;
That wasn&rsquo;t the only world record achieved in Paris
On one of the greatest nights in athletics
Ethiopia&rsquo;s Girma set his sights on the men&rsquo;s world 3000m steeplechase record of 7:53.63 set by Qatar&rsquo;s Saif Saaeed Shaheen on 3 September 2004
An ambitious pace was requested &shy; &ndash; one that would result in a finishing time of around 7:52 &ndash; and that&rsquo;s exactly what Girma managed as he crossed the finish line in 7:52.11 to take 1.52 seconds off the mark set 19 years prior
Lamecha Girma breaks the world 3000m steeplechase record in Paris (&copy; Marta Gorczynska)
who started his year with a world indoor record over 3000m
The world record is not a surprise; it was my plan to beat it tonight in Paris
It&rsquo;s the result of my full determination.&rdquo;
Perez achieved her world record in Podebrady on 21 May
clocking 2:37:15 to improve the women&rsquo;s 35km race walk mark by 29 seconds
The Spanish athlete was a dominant winner at the European Race Walking Team Championships
where she eclipsed the world record of 2:37:44 that had been set by Peru's double world champion Kimberly Garcia in Dudince on 25 March
Maria Perez celebrates her 35km race walk world record in Podebrady (&copy; Podebrady 2023 LOC / European Athletics)
Kipyegon breaks world 1500m record with 3:49...
Perez breaks 35km race walk world record in P..
The Rio Maior International Race Walking Grand Prix returns to the Portuguese municipality on Saturday (18) with a host of world and Olympic medallists set to compete at the IAAF Race Walking Challenge meeting
In both the men&rsquo;s and women&rsquo;s 20km events
the overall 2014 IAAF Race Walking Challenge winners will be up against the defending champions
Ukraine&rsquo;s reigning challenge winner Ruslan Dmytrenko will face Brazil&rsquo;s Caio Bonfim
will line up against last year&rsquo;s Rio Maior champion Vera Santos of Portugal
South American champion Bonfim has so far this year finished third in Lugano and fourth in Dudince and Podebrady
but he has clocked times of 1:22:00 and 1:21:43
which is significantly quicker than the marks he was producing at this stage of the season last year
IAAF World Race Walking Cup winner Dmytrenko will be contesting his first race of 2015
so the Ukrainian record-holder&rsquo;s current form is unknown
World 50km race walk champion Robert Heffernan will be contesting his first 20km race of 2015
The 37-year-old from Ireland recently clocked 3:48:44 in Dudince
his fastest 50km performance outside of a major championship
Fellow 50km specialist Matej Toth will be making his first appearance in Rio Maior since his victory here in 2012
The Slovakian recently clocked the third-fastest time in history over 50km with 3:34:38 in Dudince and last week the European silver medallist placed second over 20km in Podebrady
Two Olympic medallists will also be in the field
Guatemala&rsquo;s Olympic silver medallist Erick Barrondo heads to Rio Maior after finishing second in Chihuahua and third in Podebrady
while Olympic bronze medallist Wang Zhen leads a strong Chinese contingent which also includes Olympic fourth-place finisher Cai Zelin
Wang recently won the Chinese World Championships 20km trial race
who triumphed over 50km at that competition
Aside from the likes of Bonfim and Barrondo
there will be a notable presence of athletes from Central and South America
2011 world bronze medallist Luis Fernando Lopez will be joined by Colombian compatriot Eider Arevalo
the 2012 world junior champion who last year broke Lopez&rsquo;s national record with 1:19:45
Following second-place finishes in Dudince and Chihuahua this year
Ecuadoran 50km record-holder Andres Chocho will be joined in Rio Maior by Mexico&rsquo;s 2009 world bronze medallist Eder Sanchez
Other European contenders in the field include the recently improved Bertrand Moulinet from France
whose recent 1:19:18 clocking makes him the fastest in the field this year
Joining him are Poland&rsquo;s Rafal Augustyn
Ukraine&rsquo;s World Championships 50km fourth-place finisher Igor Hlavan
Italian duo Giorgio Rubino and Matteo Giupponi
whose two victories in Rio Maior came 16 years apart
In all but one of the past 23 editions of the International Race Walking Grand Prix in Rio Maior
the women&rsquo;s 20km has been won by European athletes
The only non-European winner to date was China&rsquo;s 1999 world 20km champion Liu Hongyu
her near-namesake Liu Hong will aim to get China back on top of the podium in the Portuguese municipality
who has won medals at the past three World Championships
has already got her season off to a strong start after clocking 1:27:39 at China&rsquo;s World Championships trials
beaten only by the Asian record-breaking performance by Lu Xiuzhi
Liu&rsquo;s consistency in 2014 &ndash; which included a second-place finish at the World Race Walking Cup &ndash; was rewarded by her overall victory in the IAAF Race Walking Challenge
and she will be looking to replicate that success this year by scoring valuable points this weekend
But the in-form Italian Eleonora Giorgi could scupper Liu&rsquo;s plans
The 25-year-old powered to victory in Dudince earlier this year
making her the fastest race walker this year of the entries in Rio Maior
Liu will be joined by compatriot Qieyang Shenjie
the athlete who broke Liu&rsquo;s Asian 20km record when taking bronze at the London 2012 Olympics
After finishing fourth at her country&rsquo;s World Championships Trials and seeing her own national record broken
In a race that doubles up as the Portuguese Championships
there will be a strong contingent from the host nation
but set her lifetime best of 1:28:02 less than a year ago
Joining her are fellow Portuguese race walkers Ana Cabecinha and Ines Henriques
who have both finished in the top four in the challenge standings for the past two years
Both athletes have also made it on to the podium three times in Rio Maior
has won in Rio Maior as often as Susana Feitor
The 40-year-old has triumphed eight times in her home town
and will be keen to make up for her failure to finish last year
She will also have the added incentive of qualifying for her 12th World Championships appearance later this summer
Italy&rsquo;s Elisa Rigaudo is another former Rio Maior winner in the field
The 34-year-old has finished in the top 10 at eight global championships between 2003 and 2013
during which time she earned Olympic bronze in 2008
This will be her first race since the 2013 World Championships
The second-place finishers from the past two editions will be back in Rio Maior for another bite of the cherry
Guatemala&rsquo;s Mirna Ortiz set a Central American record of 1:28:31 when finishing second here in 2013
while Erica de Sena set a Brazilian record of 1:31:22 with her second-place finish last year
Other Europeans in the field include Spanish champion Julia Takacs and Portugal-based Lithuanian Kristina Saltanovic
Toth records third-fastest 50km race walk in ..
A vast array of talent will gather at the Gran Premio Cantones de Marcha &ndash; one of the two Spanish legs of this season&rsquo;s World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold &ndash; on Saturday (18)
a city which has annually hosted this world-class competition since 1987
again offers a top field worthy of a major championships contest
The large 73-strong men&rsquo;s 20km event features a mouth-watering line-up that includes the double world champion Alvaro Martin
The 29-year-old Spaniard kicked off his campaign at the Spanish Championships in February when he had to settle for the silver medal behind the emerging Paul McGrath
but his 1:18:35 clocking on that occasion suggests he is on the right path to fight for an Olympic medal at the Paris Olympics
That is his big target this season after confirming he will not defend his two European titles in Rome next month.&nbsp;
At last month&rsquo;s World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships in Antalya
Martin &ndash; who won the 20km and 35km events at the World Championships in Budapest &ndash; also led one of the Spanish teams that qualified for Paris by placing third alongside Laura Garcia-Caro in the marathon race walk mixed relay
The Olympic fourth-place finisher is a two-time victor in La Coruna
headed by last year&rsquo;s winner in Cantones
The latter is the Olympic silver medallist who set an outstanding career best and world-leading performance of 1:16:51 to win the national title in Kobe in February
while the Brazilian Bonfim is having a busy 2024 and has completed four 20km race walking contests so far
in addition to his presence in Antalya where he secured an Olympic mixed relay berth for his country in the company of Viviane Lyra.&nbsp;
Bonfim opened 2024 with a national record of 1:17:44 in Taicang where he placed third and then he enjoyed a comfortable 1:22:49 win at the South American Championships in Recife
He followed that with third place in Podebrady last month and then a runner-up finish in Warsaw a couple of weeks ago timed at 1:19:17.&nbsp;
Bonfim will clash again with the athletes who joined him on the podium in the Polish capital: China&rsquo;s Qian Haifeng and Japan&rsquo;s Toshikazu Yamanishi
The 23-year-old Qian holds a 1:18:51 lifetime best set in Taicang in March while the Japanese athlete
is an accomplished major championships performer having two world titles &ndash; from Doha 2019 and Oregon 2022 &ndash; to his name in addition to Olympic bronze
He will be joined by his compatriot Ryo Hamanishi
who was runner-up in Kobe in a PB of 1:17:42 but failed to place in the top spots in Antalya
Spain&rsquo;s two-time European medallist Diego Garcia Carrera should also be a factor on Saturday as Cantones is one of his favourite events
having won here in 2021 and set his career best of 1:18:58 in 2019
The 28-year-old is fresh from a brilliant third place in Antalya (1:19:51) and heads to La Coruna after a training stint in the altitude of Navacerrada.&nbsp;
Marc Tur and Alvaro Lopez complete a strong Spanish team
Watch out too for Ecuador&rsquo;s world 35km silver medallist Brian Pintado as he dominated the Rio Maior meeting last Saturday in 1:19:57
while the Chinese entry also includes Zhang Jun
who recently set a PB of 1:17:26 in Taicang
Cui Lihong (1:18:03) and Zhao Xiangfei (1:18:15)
The women&rsquo;s 20km contest will be held two hours before the men&rsquo;s and the cast is also of the highest calibre
It is headed by the double world champion Maria Perez
however the 28-year-old Spaniard got injured &ndash; a stress fracture in the sacrum &ndash; shortly after her success in Budapest and underwent surgery last November
Perez returned to competition at the World Race Walking Team Championships in Antalya where she competed in the mixed relay event alongside the 2015 world champion Miguel Angel Lopez
Apart from a 5000m track contest at a low-key national league event a fortnight ago when she took an easy win in 22:09.10
Saturday will mark Perez&rsquo;s first individual appearance since 24 August when the world 35km record-holder followed her 20km title with a 35km win at the World Championships
Yet Perez is still rounding into form &ndash; and she has confirmed her absence at the European Championships next month &ndash; so the status of favourite in La Coruna should go to Peru&rsquo;s world 35km silver medallist Kimberly Garcia
The 30-year-old is the defending champion at this event and achieved a brilliant double at the 2022 World Championships.&nbsp;
Garcia could not finish in Dudince but she then bounced back strongly with commanding victories in Podebrady with a 1:27:08 time and also in Antalya two weeks later thanks to a 1:27:12 performance
her 1:30:35 clocking suggesting she had this weekend&rsquo;s event on her radar.&nbsp;
The whole Antalya 20km podium will be on show over the flat 1km circuit with China&rsquo;s Ma Zhenxia and Brazil&rsquo;s Erica Sena also lining up
Ma finished seventh in Budapest over 20km and improved her lifetime best to 1:26:07 when winning in Taicang
the evergreen 39-year-old will tackle her third 20km event in less than a month as she also competed in Rio Maior last week
coming third in 1:31:17 just behind Mexico&rsquo;s Alejandra Ortega
Ortega will race walk in the company of her more illustrious compatriot Alegna Gonz&aacute;lez
who has placed in the top eight at the last three major championships and holds a 1:26:59 lifetime best set last year in Cantones when she finished third
The never-ending list of top race walkers in contention also includes the first three athletes from the Warsaw meeting: the Chinese pair of former world record-holder Liu Hong and Qieyang Shijie
plus Australia&rsquo;s world silver medallist Jemima Montag
Liu broke the world record here back in 2015 with a 1:24:38 performance and boasts a season&rsquo;s best of 1:26:47 set in Taicang
while Montag clocked an Oceanian record of 1:27:09 in Adelaide in February
the London Olympic champion boasts an impressive 1:24:45 PB and she triumphed here in 2018 and has a season&rsquo;s best of 1:27:05
The always mighty Chinese squad also comprises Yang Jiayu
who finished runner-up in Taicang (1:26:07)
Yin Lamei (1:27:36) and Shi Yuxia (1:27:44)
Holder of a season&rsquo;s best of 1:27:21 to come second in Podebrady
Ecuador&rsquo;s Glenda Morejon will want to rebound from her Antalya performance when she was disqualified
The 24-year-old set the world U20 best in Cantones back in 2019 with a superb 1:25:29 and finished a fine sixth at last year&rsquo;s Budapest World Championships thanks to her third ever quickest time of 1:27:40
She was also three places ahead of Brazil&rsquo;s Viviane Lyra
the Spanish hopes also rest on Laura Garcia-Caro
as well as European 35km silver medallist Raquel Gonzalez (1:29:07) and two top-10 finishers in Antalya: Lidia Sanchez-Puebla and Antia Chamosa
Weather forecasters predict temperatures in the 14-16&deg;C range by the time of the competition
with a high likelihood of rain and some gusts of wind
Liu and Qian claim Chinese double in Warsaw
something of a trademark for Swedish race walker Perseus Karlstrom
Whenever he is heading to victory in a big race
he will put on a novelty Swedish Viking hat in the final few hundred metres as he approaches the finish line
ready to celebrate his triumph in his own unique way
He did it at the 2019 European Team Championships in Alytus and at the 2021 edition in Podebrady
Inside the hat he has written the words &lsquo;Alytus ETC 2019&rsquo; and &lsquo;Podebrady ETC 2021&rsquo;
And he has no doubt added another inscription to the inside of the hat after his performance at the World Athletics Race Walking Team Championships Muscat 22
where the hat was on display as he strode to victory in the 35km
He was in disbelief at his performance in the Omani capital; so much so
just moments after the race he burst into fits of uncontrollable hysterics
&ldquo;I shouldn&rsquo;t be able to win this,&rdquo; he said
Despite being the world bronze medallist over 20km and holding one of the fastest 35km PBs heading into the championships
Karlstrom didn&rsquo;t feel overly confident ahead of the race
&ldquo;I just don&rsquo;t know what to say
I did not expect that,&rdquo; he said moments after the race
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve been having a tough time coming out of last season with a hamstring injury and building back from that
&ldquo;I did a 35km race in Ireland in December but I got Covid afterwards and I was really sick for three weeks
I&rsquo;ve been building really slowly since then
and the past few weeks (before Muscat) were really tough
I haven&rsquo;t been able to push the intensity
I&rsquo;ve basically been having five or six training sessions each week that felt really hard
&ldquo;I&rsquo;d been having really bad days all week (while in Muscat)
so maybe my one good day of the week will be on race day&rsquo;.&rdquo;
He bided his time in the large lead pack during the early stages and remained in contention as the group was whittled down
When he made his break in the latter stages
no one was able to go with him and he went on to win by 40 seconds in 2:36:14
<a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/reel/CatrkhhjjZu/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Perseus Karlstr&ouml;m OLY (@perskarlstrom)</a>
I realised I was having a good day,&rdquo; he explained
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very seldom I have that kind of feeling so early on
It happened about 3km into the European Team Champs in 2019 and at the World Champs in Doha
It feels so easy and I just have to stay relaxed and wait for everyone to settle in
&ldquo;What I wanted was a slow race at the beginning
and I knew if I felt ok at the end I could push
I&rsquo;m also a really strong hill walker
&ldquo;I was planning to make a break with three laps to go
but the Chinese race walker (Lu Ning) went in front with four laps to go
so I went with him and decided to push from there
It broke up the pack instantly and I felt I could push on
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s probably the toughest course I&rsquo;ve raced on to date
but I just felt so amazing in this race,&rdquo; he added
Karlstrom had high hopes heading into the year of the Tokyo Olympics
during which he earned world bronze in Doha
and clocked world-leading times for 5000m and 10,000m on the track
Although no major championships took place
he defeated strong international fields in Adelaide
and he ended the year in second place on the world rankings
behind only world champion Toshikazu Yamanishi of Japan
Karlstrom&rsquo;s preparations started to unravel
Restrictions brought on by the Covid pandemic meant he was unable to travel to Australia to train with his coach
and Karlstrom was forced to go it alone &ndash; right before the biggest competition of his life at what could have been the peak of his career
&ldquo;Sapporo was a huge disappointment,&rdquo; he says
&ldquo;It was just a really difficult time for me
I was completely alone in my build-up for the Olympics
Basically my whole routine and the model that was so successful
it was just thrown away out of the window and I was forced to train alone for so long
I also suffered from vaccination side-effects just before the Olympics
so I just went into that race in a bad state mentally
During the race I just didn&rsquo;t have the hunger for it.&rdquo;
Karlstrom ultimately finished ninth in Sapporo
and an improvement on his DNF from the 2016 Olympics
But he knew he was capable of so much more
And that&rsquo;s why his victory in Muscat meant so much
&ldquo;It absolutely makes up for the Olympics,&rdquo; he said after winning his first senior global honour
Karlstrom joined 2013 world 50km champion Rob Heffernan&rsquo;s training group in Ireland
&ldquo;He had an outstanding career as an athlete and he&rsquo;s got some big shoes to fill after my switch from Brent
but what drew my attention is the fine work he has done with his group of athletes in recent years,&rdquo; said Karlstrom
<a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CVKeOkRo0dC/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Perseus Karlstr&ouml;m OLY (@perskarlstrom)</a>
Illness and injury at the start of 2022 has meant that it hasn&rsquo;t been the smoothest of transitions for Karlstrom
but things are finally starting to click now
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m not far into the programme because I was coming out of an injury at the beginning of the winter
so it&rsquo;s only these past two months I&rsquo;ve been able to properly follow Rob&rsquo;s training programme,&rdquo; he explains
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s very different to anything I&rsquo;d previously done in my life
It&rsquo;s a completely new set-up; we don&rsquo;t go off a normal weekly schedule that most coaches would do
Instead we work in blocks of four or five days
I&rsquo;m still adjusting to the new programme
Karlstrom says the turning point came in February at the Spanish Championships in Pamplona
where he was competing as a guest in the 20km
and the fact he badly rolled his ankle mid race
he finished sixth in a competitive field in 1:22:48
Three weeks out from the World Race Walking Team Championships
it was a small but significant confidence booster
Karlstrom raced at the Swedish Indoor Championships and led a family 1-2-3 finish in the 5000m race walk
who briefly came out of retirement for the race
finished second and his other brother Remo placed third &ndash; adding to the family race walking dynasty which started back in the 1970s when Karlstrom&rsquo;s father Enrique Vera Ibanez and mother Siv Gustavsson were among the world&rsquo;s leading race walkers
<a style="color: #c9c8cd; font-family: Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 17px; text-decoration: none;" href="https://www.instagram.com/p/CbAu2nfsVIx/?utm_source=ig_embed&amp;utm_campaign=loading" target="_blank" rel="noopener">A post shared by Perseus Karlstr&ouml;m OLY (@perskarlstrom)</a>
the last Swedish race walker to win at the World Race Walking Team Championships was his mother Siv
who achieved the last of her three victories in 1981
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s just incredible to keep the family legacy alive,&rdquo; said Karlstrom
who earlier this month clocked a season&rsquo;s best of 1:19:42 when finishing second over 20km in Podebrady
And the family&rsquo;s sporting genes isn&rsquo;t just limited to race walkers
Karlstrom recently discovered that he is the third cousin of North American record-holder Keira D&rsquo;Amato
&ldquo;She&rsquo;s on the other side of the world
clocking the best marathon times by a US woman
and I&rsquo;m over in Sweden doing the same in the race walks,&rdquo; he said
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a very funny and cool coincidence.&rdquo;
Now that Karlstrom has had a taste of success on the world stage
The World Athletics Championships Oregon22 is
And after winning in Muscat off disrupted preparation
he knows he could be even stronger when it comes to the peak of the season
he is undecided about which discipline to focus on
He&rsquo;ll likely enter the 20km and 35km in Oregon
as the nine-day gap between races makes it easier for athletes to double up
But in terms of which event to gear his training around
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s too early to say but my ambition for Oregon is to do the 20km and the 35km,&rdquo; he says
&ldquo;I only did my first ever 35km in Dublin in December
and it&rsquo;s a new distance so I want to take things step by step and gain more experience so I can perform at my best in Oregon
&ldquo;The 20km was always the focus for the World Champs
at least for my coach,&rdquo; adds Karlstrom
&ldquo;But this (the 35km in Muscat) is what I had secretly been really looking forward to
It&rsquo;s not going to be a hilly course at the World Champs (like it was in Muscat)
though &ndash; if Karlstrom&rsquo;s preparations from now continue to go well
there&rsquo;s every chance the spectators at the World Championships will catch a glimpse of the Swede&rsquo;s trademark Viking hat on the roads of Eugene in July
Karlstrom earns first global honours with 35k..
Getting through a whole winter season with no interruptions was an unfamiliar experience for Antonella Palmisano
The Italian race walker had finished in the top five at the IAAF World Championships Beijing 2015 and the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio
but she had battled injuries in the build-up to both of those championships
&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t walk for 20 days before the 2015 World Championships but I managed to finish fifth
I had no winter training leading in to last year but I crossed the finish-line in fourth place in Rio,&rdquo; said the 26-year-old from Mottola
After clocking an indoor world lead of 12:08.83 for 3000m in February
she broke Ileana Salvador&rsquo;s Italian 10,000m race walk record in Orvieto with 41:57.23
becoming just the fifth woman in history to cover the distance on the track within 42 minutes
&ldquo;I was very calm and relaxed in Orvieto
which was an unusual feeling after getting through some very difficult seasons,&rdquo; said Palmisano
and dipping under 42 minutes was a confidence booster.&rdquo;
Her first big test of the year came at the European Race Walking Cup in Podebrady
She dominated the 20km event and crossed the line nearly two minutes ahead of her rivals
&ldquo;It was my first victory in a major senior race,&rdquo; said Palmisano
who won the junior women&rsquo;s title at the 2010 World Race Walking Cup
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a dream come true to achieve this result in a race where I always felt in control.&rdquo;
Palmisano followed in the footsteps of two notable compatriots
1964 Olympic 50km race walk champion Abdon Pamich won one of his greatest races in Podebrady in 1956
while Anna Rita Sidoti won the European Cup in La Coruna in 1996
making her the only Italian athlete before Palmisano to win the title
Palmisano&rsquo;s Podebrady win came two years and one day after Sidoti&rsquo;s death
the 1997 world champion&rsquo;s death in 2015 had a significant impact on many Italian athletics fans who admired the diminutive race walker
not only for her great performances but also for her career-long work ethic and the courage she showed during her long illness
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a big honour to know that I am the only Italian race walker to win at the European Cup after her,&rdquo; said Palmisano
&ldquo;I hope that I will be able to follow her example in sport and in life.&rdquo;
Palmisano arrived at the World Championships in the form of her life
&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t feel any pressure in London because I was well prepared,&rdquo; she said
&ldquo;I was focused only on myself and my technique.&rdquo;
Palmisano&rsquo;s pressure-free and patient approach paid off
&ldquo;I started the race with the aim of being at the front of the leading pack and staying with the best race walkers in the world,&rdquo; she said
&ldquo;I felt good when they pushed the pace at 15 kilometres
but I wasn&rsquo;t able to respond at 18 kilometres and I was left behind
when I saw that Chinese race walker Lyu Xiuxhi had been disqualified
that I realised I had won the bronze medal.&rdquo;
Palmisano took more than a minute off her PB to finish third in 1:26:36
just 18 seconds behind winner Yang Jiayu of China and Mexico&rsquo;s Maria Guadalupe Gonzalez
&ldquo;After dreaming of this medal for a long time
I have finally fulfilled my goal,&rdquo; she said
&ldquo;My only regret is that I couldn&rsquo;t keep up with the top two race walkers until the finish
I only realised after the race that I&rsquo;d improved my personal best because I hadn&rsquo;t been focusing on the time
I was surprised because I didn&rsquo;t think I had walked so fast.&rdquo;
Palmisano always receives great support from her fans
proposed to Palmisano after last year&rsquo;s Olympics and they plan to get married in September next year
doesn&rsquo;t travel often but watched her compete in Podebrady and London this year
as well as at the 2014 European Championships in Zurich
makes flowers for Palmisano to wear in her hair at each of her major competitions
&ldquo;The flowers are my special lucky charm,&rdquo; said Palmisano
&ldquo;In Podebrady I wore the same blue flower I always wear for European and World Cup events; it is the same one I wore in Chihuahua seven years ago
&ldquo;I chose a different colour for the Olympic Games and the World Championships
It depends on the colours of the flag of the host country where the event takes place
One of Palmisano&rsquo;s closest friends in athletics is 2008 Olympic and 2011 world bronze medallist Elisa Rigaudo
who retired last year at the age of 36 after finishing 11th at the Olympic Games in Rio
&ldquo;It was a privilege to train with her and I learnt from her the secret to be always relaxed before competitions,&rdquo; said Palmisano
&ldquo;In Rio she was so calm before the race and I wondered how she managed to keep this relaxed approach to athletics and life
She also showed that it is possible to combine a sports career with motherhood.&rdquo;
Palmisano rounded out her 2017 campaign with an individual win at the &lsquo;Around Taihu International Race Walking Multi-Day Competition&rsquo;
a multiple-stage contest held over four days at the end of September around Lake Taihu in China
&ldquo;It was a good experience,&rdquo; said Palmisano
who enjoyed a two-week break after her efforts in Taihu
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s different from the traditional 20km race walking events
The races were held on demanding and hilly courses on four consecutive days and were very hard
You can compete with teammates from different countries and I really enjoyed the experience of racing without pressure
&ldquo;It was interesting to see how my body responded to the jet-leg during my recent trip to China
as it could be an important factor considering that the next big events like the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships and the Olympic Games will be held on Asian soil.&rdquo;
She hopes China will once again bring good fortune when she competes at the IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships Taicang 2018
told me that I have to forget what I achieved this year and continue working hard,&rdquo; said Palmisano
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m training hard to reach my best form in two years at the Olympic Games in Tokyo
but next season will feature very important events and my main goals will be Taicang and the European Championships in Berlin.&rdquo;
perhaps Palmisano will wear a red and yellow flower in her hair when she lines up in Taicang
Bird-Smith and Palmisano take individual hono..
previously set by double world champion Kimberly Garcia
Perez, who was fourth at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics held in 2021, took an early and comfortable lead by the second kilometre and was even lapping some of the men on the 1km park course.
The Granada-based athlete strode on to victory, finishing more than eight minutes ahead of her teammate Raquel Gonzalez who timed 2:45:42 as Cristina Montesinos (2:45:58) ensured the Spaniards swept the medals.
If ratified by World Athletics, Perez would become the first Spanish world record holder in nearly 15 years.
Francisco Fernandez broke the men&#x27;s world 10,000m race walk record in 2008.
</a>Spaniards also reigned supreme in the men’s 35km
Alvaro Martin set a new national record with his winning time of 2:25:35
Christopher Linke claimed silver in a German record of 2:27:05 as Spain’s Miguel Angel Lopez closed in for the bronze
ensuring the Spaniards win the overall women and men’s team titles
The traditional <a href="http://praguechess.cz/poradane-akce-detail.php?id_akce=33&amp;akce_menu=uvod&amp;znak=0&amp;langue=en" rel="ugc nofollow noreferrer noopener">"Snow Drops vs. Old Hands"</a> tournament
the annual match between talented ladies and chess veterans
Can the legends fight back in the second half
The Czech Republic already has a long chess tradition
and the restless chess organizer Pavel Matocha is mostly responsible for a chess calendar filled with nice events
the Chess Train and also the&nbsp;"Snow Drops vs
This year the Snow Drops team consists of 30-year-old GM Viktorij Cmilyte (2506) of Lithuania
21-year-old IM Maria Muzychuk (2491) of Ukraine
20-year-old WGM Alina Kashlinskaya (2422) of Russia and 18-year-old WGM Nastassia&nbsp;Ziaziulkina&nbsp;(2350) of Belarus
The Old Hands are 61-year-old GM&nbsp;Iossif Dorfman (2580) of France
66-year-old GM&nbsp;Boris Gulko (2543) of USA
80-year-old GM&nbsp;Borislav Ivkov (2408) of Serbia and 78-year-old GM&nbsp;Wolfgang Uhlmann (2334) of Germany
The tournament is held November 30th - December 8th
2013 in the&nbsp;Zamecek hotel in Podebrady,&nbsp;a historical spa town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic
It lies on the river Labe 50 kilometers east of Prague
the tournament is a double Scheveningen match
or "plus one" and in all cases these were three draws and one win
logically,it is quite a friendly tournament thus far with twelve draws and four wins
By now you must have reached another conclusion: the chess legends didn't win a single game yet
In the first round the Snow Drops played with the white pieces and immediately scored two wins
Cmilyte beat Ivkov in a nice game that started as a Stonewall Dutch
White's funny doubled pawns on the e- and f-files eventually became a menacing force
who is especially struggling so far in Podebrady
He is still faithful to his King's Indian and did well in the first round
In the third round his king didn't survive Muzychuk's strong attack in a Trompowsky:
And in the fourth round the 78-year-old lost an endgame that was extremely drawish
At the end Black is going to take on b4 and win the "pawn ending" on the queenside
the tournament includes a number of side events
The opening ceremony saw a simul by 85-year-old (!) Pal Benko
who will also give a lecture on Wednesday (the rest day) about his encounters with Bobby Fischer
Another simul will be given by Genna Sosonko
GM J&aacute;n Plachetka and GM Wolfgang Uhlmann with wives at the opening ceremony..
...where GM Pal Benko performed the drawing of colors
GM Pal Benko endgame studies aficionado and composer
GM Jan Smejkal a GM Iossif Dorfman chatting
A simul by GM Pal Benko,&nbsp;with Jiř&iacute; Navr&aacute;til
Pavel Matocha and Vlastimil Chl&aacute;dek
Email: peter@chess.com FOR SUPPORT PLEASE USE <a href="https://www.chess.com/support">chess.com/support</a>!Phone: 1 (800) 318-2827Address: 877 E 1200 S #970397
If you're seeking to elevate your summer experience to new heights, immerse yourself in the rich Czech culture, and <a href="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-33.html" data-cwid="1898590" data-cwiad="82022" data-cu="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-33.html" target="_blank">master the Czech language</a>
Whether you're a traveler exploring Prague or a resident eager to utilize your holiday in a meaningful way
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Charles University’s<a href="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-33.html" data-cwid="1898591" data-cwiad="82022" data-cu="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-33.html" target="_blank"> Institute for Language and Preparatory Studies</a> (ÚJOP) has a variety of courses that are ideal for those who only have two to four weeks to spend on intensive classes but want to improve fluency in everyday situations
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taking in icons of modern architecture and visiting the Military History Institute
The course draws to a close with the ceremonial presentation of certificates
Whether you are a total beginner or more advance Czech speaker
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or a student of Slavonic studies with a more advanced knowledge of Czechia
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plus enjoy afternoon activities twice/three times a week leaving plenty of time to explore Prague
making it ideal for those who live outside of Prague and want to combine language school with a city break
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Expect interesting insights into Prague's culture and history in a friendly and supportive atmosphere
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Both my teachers Lucie and Nikola were really good
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She was always in touch with how we were doing and would review or move on as needed
The methodology she used for teaching was excellent,” former student Lynn Sedivy said of her experience at ÚJOP
including but not limited to academics and journalists
The students taking part in this course usually have a higher level of Czech
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<a href="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-74.html?ujopcmsid=61:summer-czech-course-for-czech-expatriates" data-cwid="1899677" data-cwiad="82022" data-cu="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-74.html?ujopcmsid=61:summer-czech-course-for-czech-expatriates" target="_blank">The Summer Czech Course for Czech Expatriates</a> (from July 24 to August 18) focuses on discovering Czech history
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the age range of the participants was between 7 and 83
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In total 90/45 hours in four/two weeks course
For 20 years the&nbsp;Institute of Language and Preparatory Studies' (ÚJOP) summer courses have been giving students from all around the world the chance to combine an intensive Czech language study with extra-curricular activities
Enroll now and start on the path to fluency in historic Czech settings with top instructors
Like middle-distance runners who take on the marathon in the hope of extending their careers
senior race walkers usually start at 20km and graduate to the long-slog 50km
the German champion is on short odds to claim a medal over 20km at the IAAF World Championships London 2017 after something of a transformation
The 28-year-old admits he&rsquo;s in the form of his life thanks to a tougher mental approach to go with coaching by 1983 world champion Ronald Weigel
and a clutch of confidence-boosting performances such as the gold he claimed at the European Race Walking Cup in May
Linke pretty much showboated that last kilometre in Podebrady after building a commanding lead
It was his second victory in consecutive months at the picturesque Czech spa town aptly 50 kilometres east of Prague
He also won the European Athletics permit meeting on 8 April as well as removing 20 seconds from his personal best to breeze home in 1:18:59
There was no PB in the second effort on 21 May
but he was posing for photographs by the time world champion Miguel Angel Lopez hove into view 52 seconds later for second place
Compare it to 12 seconds between China&rsquo;s victorious Wang Zhen and teammate Cai Zelin at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games
and it brings Linke&rsquo;s achievement into full focus
It might be argued the European Cup is relatively low key
but at the 2015 edition Lopez could only forge a 29-second gap over the formidable Matej Thoth to win &ndash; and that in Murcia
The irony of Linke&rsquo;s easy win over Lopez in Podebrady is not lost on the German
who has an eyeball-busting tattoo on his right arm proclaiming: &lsquo;I have a dream&rsquo; sitting on top of the Olympic rings
It was the Spaniard&rsquo;s world win in Beijing in 2015 that made Linke realign the realisation of that dream
While Lopez was standing on top of the podium
the German was nearly two kilometres back and forced to settle for 38th
Linke admits he needed to get his head around the problem
&ldquo;I've changed several things in my training after my failure at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing,&rdquo; he explained
&ldquo;Since then I've been working with a mental trainer
so I can motivate myself in training and focus on competitions
I've been able to train injury-free and to improve and control my training since then.&rdquo;
it had nothing to do with the calibre of his coach
Weigel can look back on a stellar and somewhat interesting career
The very first world 50km champion in 1983 and 1988 Olympic silver medallist has been Linke&rsquo;s coach for 10-plus years
The protege reasons the lustre from that glittering career has to rub off somewhere along the line
&ldquo;Since Ronald Weigel himself was a successful race walker
50km world champion and three-time Olympic medallist
he shares his positive experiences with the athletes,&rdquo; Linke added
&ldquo;For more than 10 years we've been working closely together and this is why we have a good relationship of trust.&rdquo;
it looked for a long time the 1.90m (6ft 3in) race walker was more likely to succeed at the demanding 50km
Third at the European Race Walking Cup in 2011
followed by third at the IAAF World Race Walking Cup in Saransk
but he now admits racing 50km was more a case of needs-must pragmatism than a chosen path
&ldquo;I always liked the 20km more than the 50km
especially because the speed and short distance is more fun for me,&rdquo; he said
&ldquo;At the beginning of my career I focused more on the 50km because the German qualifying standard of 3:52:30 for the distance is much easier to achieve for such a young race walker than the standard of 1:21:45 for 20km
In this way I could qualify and receive sponsorship.&rdquo;
Linke went back Podebrady in April in 2016 and finished within 80 minutes for the first time
and in the same place and on the same course
he squeezed under 79 minutes for his current PB
and in between came a heartening fifth place at the Olympics as a medal contender until the last two kilometres when Wang and Cai lit the afterburners to take gold and silver
Australia&rsquo;s Dane Bird-Smith was third in 1:19:37 with the German a not-too-distant 23 seconds back
He agrees that finding fifth gear at the end in The Mall could make the difference to his chances
but Linke is looking forward to coming back to the UK&rsquo;s capital city after placing 24th at the 2012 Olympics &ndash; and hopefully making up two spots from Rio to a medal
&ldquo;My biggest rivals are the top 10 of the Olympics in Rio last year,&rdquo; he said
&ldquo;I still remember the fast course from 2012 and that's why we have to expect fast times
&ldquo;I hope the atmosphere will be as good as at the Olympics five years ago
especially because I'm looking forward to the support of my family
&ldquo;I'm firmly convinced that I will fight for a medal
form on the day will be the deciding factor.&rdquo;
Linke finds it hard to suppress inner delight at finding himself in the best form of his life
&ldquo;At 28 I'm at the best age for a race walker
&ldquo;I've been training for almost 12 years now and that's why I'm more professional and experienced than ever before
I'm currently at the best mental and physical form
&ldquo;German race walking was more promoted before (East and West) reunification (in 1990)
talents were less selected and promoted and that's why German race walkers couldn't keep up with the strong international rivals
we can notice a change in German male race walking for the last years,&rdquo; he added
Italy&rsquo;s 2017 world bronze medallist Antonella Palmisano produced the fastest clocking for 18 years in the 10km race walk when winning at Italy&rsquo;s Endurance Festival Championships in Modena on Sunday (18) in 41:28
Palmisano was contesting her third race in 15 days
following a world-leading 21:00.0 over 5000m in Trivio on 3 October and her 1:28:40 victory over 20km in Podebrady on 10 October
The 29-year-old showed no signs of fatigue in Modena
and after a steady opening kilometre of 4:13 she picked up the pace and reached the half-way point in 20:50
She maintained that tempo for a few more kilometres and managed to move up a gear in the latter stages
covering the final kilometre in 4:04 to cross the finish line in 41:28
Her winning time took 10 seconds off the previous Italian record
set 23 years ago by 1996 Olympic fourth-place finisher Rossella Giordano
1993 world silver medallist Ileana Salvador had clocked 41:30 27 years ago but her time wasn&rsquo;t officially recognised as an Italian record
is an improvement on both of those marks and takes her to sixth on the world all-time list
The last woman to cover the distance in a faster time was Norway&rsquo;s Kjersti Tysse-Playzer
&ldquo;Today I wanted to have fun,&rdquo; said Palmisano
whose previous best for the distance was 42:50
although she had also clocked 41:57.29 for 10,000m on the track
&ldquo;It&rsquo;s the first time I&rsquo;ve done three races so close together
but I didn&rsquo;t feel the fatigue from Podebrady in my legs
It wasn&rsquo;t easy in the final two or three kilometres
who represented Italy at last year&rsquo;s World Championships
Francesco Fortunato won the men&rsquo;s race in 39:06
moving him to third on the Italian all-time list
almost exactly a year to the day since he last raced
Ethiopia's Olympic bronze medallist Hagos Gebrhiwet enjoyed a comfortable victory over 10km at the Corsa dei Castelli in Trieste
The challenging course begins at Miramare Castle and finishes at San Giusto Castle
crossing the Porto Vecchio with an uphill final kilometre
a world medallist over 5000m in 2013 and 2015
finished in 29:49 to win by 11 seconds from compatriot Bayelign Teshager
who hadn't raced since last year's World Championships due to injury
Karoline Bjerkeli Grovdal broke her own national 10km record at the Hytteplanmila 10km in Hole
The 30-year-old clocked 30:32 to smash the previous mark of 31:25 she set at this race in 2017
The performance lifted the continental cross-country standout to fourth on the 2020 world list and third all-time among Europeans
trailing just Lonah Chemtai Salpeter (30:05) and Paula Radcliffe (30:21)
Grovdal has raced little this season but she was on a tear from the gun to make this appearance count
reaching three kilometres in 9:10 and the midway point in 15:17 to finish 31st in the race overall among the 90 competitors
Vienna S&oslash;yland Dahle was a distant second in 33:18
who made his debut at the distance with a 27:54 course record in this race last year
Opening with a modest 2:59 first kilometre
he worked his way back to the leaders after two kilometres and briefly took the lead at the four kilometre point
Zerei Mezngi then upped the pace after five kilometres with Ingebrigtsen and his brother Filip struggling to maintain contact
Mezngi extended his lead to six seconds at six kilometres and forged on largely unchallenged to win in 28:20
while Filip Ingebrigtsen drifted back to finish sixth in 29:03
who remained in contact through seven kilometres
slowed to a jog over the waning stages and eventually finished in 35:05
trail and ultramarathon runner and ski mountaineer Kilian Jornet ran with the leaders early on
Jepchirchir breaks women-only world record at..
Kiplimo makes history for Uganda at World Ath..
The chess veterans did slightly better in the second half, but in the end the&nbsp;<a href="http://praguechess.cz/poradane-akce-detail.php?id_akce=33&amp;akce_menu=uvod&amp;znak=0&amp;langue=en" rel="ugc nofollow noreferrer noopener">"Snow Drops vs. Old Hands"</a>&nbsp;match was still won by the talented ladies: 17.5-14.5
Gulko and Uhlmann scored points for the Old Hands team
while Kashlinskaya won two more games for the Snow Drops
Old Hands double Scheveningen match took place 30 November-8 December
2013&nbsp;in&nbsp;the&nbsp;Zamecek hotel in Podebrady,&nbsp;a historical spa town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic.&nbsp;The "Snow Drops" were 30-year-old GM&nbsp;Viktorij Cmilyte&nbsp;(2506) of Lithuania
21-year-old IM&nbsp;Maria Muzychuk&nbsp;(2491) of Ukraine
20-year-old WGM&nbsp;Alina Kashlinskaya&nbsp;(2422) of Russia and 18-year-old WGM&nbsp;Nastassia&nbsp;Ziaziulkina&nbsp;(2350) of Belarus
The Old Hands were 61-year-old GM&nbsp;Iossif Dorfman&nbsp;(2580) of France
66-year-old GM&nbsp;Boris Gulko&nbsp;(2543) of USA
80-year-old GM&nbsp;Borislav Ivkov&nbsp;(2408) of Serbia and 78-year-old GM&nbsp;Wolfgang Uhlmann&nbsp;(2334) of Germany
From <a href="http://www.chess.com/news/snow-drops-vs-old-hands-10-6-at-half-time-5704">our first report</a> we know that&nbsp;the "Snow Drops" were leading 10-6 at half-time. So what happened after that?&nbsp;Well, before getting to the games of the second half, let's have a look at <a href="http://www.praguechess.cz/index.php?modul=&amp;akce=&amp;orderby=1801&amp;strankovani=0&amp;zobrazeni=ano&amp;langue=en" rel="ugc nofollow noreferrer noopener">this report of Pal Benko's lecture</a>
After his emigration Pal Benko settled in New York
He commented on his start in America with those words: &ldquo;After the arrival into America there was no time for chess preparation
I got into the heart of capitalism &ndash; at the financial palace on the Wall Street
where I worked as a broker.&rdquo; He used to play with Bobby Fischer very often those days
they often visited him in his apartment and they both also belonged to the Manhattan Chess Club
Due to his growing fame it was far easier to make one's living playing chess
I could leave Wall Street and start to play chess professionally.&rdquo;
the Old Hands got to play the white pieces again and so they had their chances to do something about the score
Wolfgang Uhlmann was still not in great shape; he lost quickly to&nbsp;Alina Kashlinskaya despite getting a better position out of the opening
Also in the other games the Old Hands had their chances
Ivkov-Cmylite and Gulko-Muzychuk were all drawn
In round 6 the Old Hands finally won a game
It was Iossif Dorfman who beat Mariya Muzychuk
but with two pieces for a rook it was impossible spoil a win for Black
it was enough to score an overall win in this round because Kashlinskaya levelled the score in her game with Borislav Ivkov.&nbsp;
By then the score had gone up to 14.5-9.5 and it was clear that the ladies were going to leave Podebrady victoriously
But the Old Hands refused to go down without a fight
and in the penultimate round they finally got the better of their opponents
Muzychuk could't play because of health problems and so Uhlmann won his game by default
Gulko won a good game&nbsp;and made the situation in the leaderboard more bearable: 14.5-11.5.&nbsp;
In the last round all games ended in draws
Uhlmann got to play his beloved French Winawer one more time:
And so the Snow Drops won the match&nbsp;17.5-14.5.&nbsp;The best individual result went to Alina Kashlinskaya (5 points out of 8 games
who had some world-class guidance: she was assisted by her boyfriend
who also helped Vishy Anand at several world title matches
World champion Miguel Angel Lopez will face four of the 10 fastest race walkers this year when he competes at the Gran Premio Cantones de La Coru&ntilde;a
the Spanish leg of this year&rsquo;s IAAF Race Walking Challenge
Lopez produced a convincing performance three weeks ago at the European Cup in Podebrady where he finished runner-up in a season&rsquo;s best of 1:20:21
to show he is on the right path to defending his world title in London in two months&rsquo; time
But the 28-year-old will face a strong challenge from the powerful Japanese trio of Eiki Takahashi
Takahashi is the second-fastest man in the world this season after setting a massive PB of 1:18:23 to win the national title in Kobe
Yamanishi and Kobayashi finished third and fourth on that occasion with respective times of 1:19:03 and 1:19:13
Brazil&rsquo;s Caio Bonfim and China&rsquo;s Wang Rui should also be in the hunt for the top places
The latter is a rising race walker who improved his PB by exactly two minutes with a 1:19:23 effort for third in Huangshan in March
He then showed good form in Taicang the following month when he won in 1:21:58
China&rsquo;s squad also includes Olympic 50km fifth-place finisher Yu Wei
who clocked 1:22:22 to finish fourth in Lugano in March but failed to finish at his specialist event in Taicang one month later
Bonfim produced a lifetime best of 1:19:42 at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games but just missed out on a medal and had to settle for fourth place in front of his home crowd
The 26-year-old Brazilian won in Taicang in April in 1:22:16
but finished a distant 30th at the Pan-American Cup in Lima one month later
This weekend&rsquo;s race will be Bonfim&rsquo;s sixth 20km contest of the year
Karlstrom showed fine form in Podebrady where the 27-year-old Swede joined Lopez on the podium by taking third in 1:20:40
89 seconds shy of his PB of 1:19:11 set in the same Czech city last season
who is also the European champion for the distance
will also have a strong local challenge in the guise of European under-23 silver medallist Alvaro Martin
Martin and Amezcua clearly defeated Lopez at the Spanish 20km Championships in Merida in March while European junior champion Garcia finished a creditable seventh in Podebrady
Watch out too for Mexico&rsquo;s 1:19:20 man Omar Pineda and Ecuador&rsquo;s Andres Chocho
In the absence of China&rsquo;s world and Olympic champion Liu Hong
the women&rsquo;s contest appears wide open
Wang Yingliu of China is the quickest woman this year among Saturday&rsquo;s entrants thanks to her 1:28:15 performance in Huangshan
Wang&rsquo;s main rivals should be Portugal&rsquo;s Ana Cabecinha and Spain&rsquo;s Laura Garc&iacute;a-Caro
The 32-year-old Portuguese is a consistent performer at major championships
having managed top-eight places over the past three Olympic Games
three World Championships and two European Championships
Cabecinha finished second in Podebrady in a season&rsquo;s best of 1:29:44
just ahead of 22-year-old Garc&iacute;a-Caro (1:29:57) who will line up alongside compatriot Mar&iacute;a P&eacute;rez
who finished sixth in Podebrady in a PB of 1:30:52
Olympic seventh-place finisher Erica de Sena should also be a factor this weekend
The Brazilian&rsquo;s best mark this year is 1:30:49
but last year she recorded four sub-90-minute performances
The course records belong to the Chinese pair of Wang Zhen
who set the current world record of 1:24:38 two years ago here
Weather forecasters are predicting a sunny day with a light breeze and temperatures in the 15-17C range by the time of the contest in the early evening
Liu and Wang again provide Chinese double tri..
Five athletes will represent the British team at the 2021 European Race Walking Team Championships in Podebrady
who was selected for his second Olympic Games earlier this month
The Tonbridge athlete finished fourth at the event back in 2019 as he led Great Britain and Northern Ireland to team silver for the first time
Enfield and Haringey’s Callum Wilkinson (Rob Heffernan) has been in strong form so far this year and will be seeking to attain the Olympic Games qualifying standard of 1:21.00
The 24-year-old’s personal best stands narrowly outside the standard at 1:21.21
Cameron Corbishley (Andi Drake) is the third male athlete on the team to race over 20km
The Maidstone and Medway athlete competed over 50km earlier this season
Heather Lewis (Martin Bell; Pembrokeshire) and Bethan Davies (Andi Drake; Cardiff) – the one-two from the Müller British Athletics 20km Walk Trials at Kew Gardens last month – have been selected for the women’s 20km race
Lewis sits at the top of the 2021 UK rankings in the event
is the second fastest Briton ever over the distance
“It will be great to see these five athletes competing out in Podebrady at the European Race Walking Team Championships
With limited opportunities to compete against the best in Europe over the last year or so
this will be hugely beneficial for these athletes as they prepare for the busy summer ahead.”
The British team for the European Race Walking Team Championships
Cameron Corbishley (Andi Drake; Medway and Maidstone)
Callum Wilkinson (Rob Heffernan; Enfield and Haringey)
Heather Lewis (Martin Bell; Pembrokeshire)
Developed by <a href="http://goodformgroup.co.uk" target="_blank"></a>
residents and commuters passing through Vinohrady can expect disruptions to their daily routines as essential repairs take place at the heavily frequented Flora intersection
These repair works are set to begin on Monday
The primary focus of these repairs is the replacement of the six-core track branch in the direction of Korunní Street
along with necessary maintenance on curved sections at key intersections within the city
The transport authority overseeing this project
has laid out a comprehensive plan to manage tram services during this period of disruption
Commuters are advised to plan their journeys accordingly as tram services on several lines will be affected
specifically in the section between Flora and Náměstí Míru
while line number 13 will be temporarily canceled
Lines 10 and 16 will be diverted via the Radhošťská and Náměstí Jiřího z Poděbrady stops
while line 16 will conclude its route at Náměstí Bratří Synků interchange
and Karlovo náměstí stops before returning to the Královka interchange
running only from Vozovna Kobylisa to Florenc
Night route 91 will be divided into two segments for the duration of the repairs
which will run from the Sídliště Řepy stop via Anděl
specifically between the Viktoria Žižkov and Koh-i-noor stops
will focus on the replacement of the eighteen-heart branch in the direction of the Olšanské&nbsp;hřbitovy loop
This stage is anticipated to conclude on the evening of Oct
trams will not operate along the Vinohradská street section between the Radhošťská and Olšanské hřbitovy stops
will be operational along the Želivského – Flora – Radhošťská route
with the X91 line offering nighttime service between Želivského and Flora
commuters can expect disruptions as the new Holyně - Slivenec tram line is integrated into the existing network
tram line number 5 will terminate at the Sídliště Barrandov loop
and no replacement bus service will be introduced
Czech universities have great international prestige
but getting accepted into a program can be a rigorous process
especially for foreigners unfamiliar with the nuances of the country’s academic landscape – whether that be study techniques
or language barriers.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;
Attending a Czech university is free if you study in Czech
Enrolling in a <a href="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-69.html?utm_source=Expats.cz+-+Foundation+Programmes&amp;utm_medium=Article&amp;utm_campaign=expats_foundation_programmes_czech" data-cwid="1954662" data-cwiad="84330" data-cu="https://ujop.cuni.cz/UJOPEN-69.html?utm_source=Expats.cz+-+Foundation+Programmes&amp;amp;utm_medium=Article&amp;amp;utm_campaign=expats_foundation_programmes_czech" target="_blank">Foundation Programme in Czech</a> will help you gain confidence in the language
regardless of your level and academic subjects
Staff will also help you choose the right university for your goals and guide you through the application process
If you’ve already chosen a field of study that interests you
UJOP offers a number of options to help get you ready
This intensive program was designed by Charles University experts in close collaboration with the university faculties to prepare international students for medical studies and a successful career
you will spend nine months – 35 hours a week – improving your academic knowledge in subjects like biology
You will also be guided through the nostrification process
UJOP staff will help you choose a university that best matches your needs and prepare for the entrance exams
You will attend university open days during the program to see which ones click with you
which starts in November and lasts seven months
while others are based at the UJOP center in Poděbrady
a beautiful spa town one hour by train from Prague
Classes take place directly at Poděbrady Castle
“The teachers are professionals and are helping us students with everything we need
The specific content of the program really helps us prepare for the entrance exams and studying at the universities,” says Yaroslava
a current student of the Engineering and IT program in Poděbrady
Most UJOP graduates successfully transition to Czech universities around the country
Popular choices include Charles University
Czech Technical University in Prague (ČVUT)
the University of Chemistry and Technology
Prague University of Economics and Business (VŠE)
and make new friends through UJOP’s transformative programs.&nbsp;
This morning, 48 locations across Czechia were under flood alert with four areas along the Elbe River at the highest risk. According to the<a href="https://www.chmi.cz/files/portal/docs/meteo/om/vystrahy/index.html" data-cwid="1936071" data-cwiad="83538" data-cu="https://www.chmi.cz/files/portal/docs/meteo/om/vystrahy/index.html" target="_blank"> Czech Hydrometeorological Institute </a>(ČHMÚ)
10 areas reported a reduced flood alert by 5 a.m
The warning issued by meteorologists pertains to potential stream flooding around the Elbe and Morava rivers
and the lower sections of the Vltava and Ohře rivers
and Kostelec nad Labem in the Mělník (Central Bohemia) area woke to the Elbe River at level-three flood danger (the highest)
the Vltava River in Český Krumlov (South Bohemia)
fluctuated between dangerous levels around midnight before being downgraded to a lower-level alert three hours later
Velk&Atilde;&iexcl; voda v &Auml;&#140;el&Atilde;&iexcl;kovic&Atilde;&shy;ch. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/povoden?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#povoden</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/celakovice?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#celakovice</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/velkavoda?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#velkavoda</a> <a href="https://t.co/T6mRoVQzEn">pic.twitter.com/T6mRoVQzEn</a>
other areas like Trmice on the Bílina River in the Ústí nad Labem region
and Nové Sady in Olomouc reported flood alerts in the early hours
The ČHMÚ has set a low-level flood alert for Prague as of Thursday morning
and Poděbrady areas (all Central Bohemia) have an extreme-danger level alert
The entirety of southwest and northeast Czechia is without risk
water levels in rivers nationwide are expected to fall
with the exclusion of areas around the Ústí nad Labem region
"The peak of the river level in Ústí nad Labem should come late tonight
and from tomorrow [water levels in the] Elbe River should gradually fall too,” said a Czech Television meteorologist
The rise in river levels commenced prior to Christmas Eve due to substantial rainfall and subsequent snowmelt from significant temperature jumps
Prague activated preventive measures due to the rising water levels
The city's flood authority implemented closed floodplains and activated barriers along the Vltava
leading some residents to evacuate homes preemptively
firefighters’ technical interventions surged multiple-fold
surpassing regular intervention rates on Tuesday
Competing as an Authorised Neutral Athlete
Yana Smerdova followed up her success at the European Race Walking Cup in Podebrady in May when she won the U20 10km walk with another victory over the same distance on the track at the European Athletics U20 Championships in Grosseto
Italy.&nbsp;Smerdova began as the pre-event favourite by virtue of her victory in Podebrady but an upset appeared to be in the making as Germany&rsquo;s Teresa Zurek opened up a gap - albeit far from an insurmountable one - with six laps remaining
Smerdova kept her cool in warm and humid conditions and closed the gap on Zurek before pulling away in the last three laps.&nbsp;After a 4:45 split for the penultimate kilometre
Smerdova closed with a swift 4:30 final kilometre to claim the first gold medal of the four day event in 47:19.69 with Zurek safe in the silver medal position in 47:33.20.&nbsp;
"The race has been very tough because it was really hot
In the last minutes I put a lot of effort and I managed to win
I was not sure to win because in sport every race is different,&rdquo; said Smerdova.&nbsp;&nbsp;
whose pre-race ambition was to finish inside the top-10
opined the conditions were not a problem but she chose to sacrifice speed in favour of technique in the closing stages after receiving two warnings for lifting
&ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t want a third mark which could cost me my medal,&rdquo; she said.&nbsp;
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&ldquo;I was really tired after the silver medal I won last week in Nairobi at the World U18 Championships and I could have done a better result and get a better medal otherwise
I got two penalties in the first two kilometers so during the race I was a bit stressed
focusing on the technique,&rdquo; said Bekmez
Bekmez will be able to try and upgrade her bronze medal at the next edition of the European Athletics U20 Championships in Boras
Ruckstuhl in command after heptathlon first day
After finishing her first day with a lifetime best of 24.74 in the 200m
Switzerland&rsquo;s Geraldine Ruckstuhl leads the heptathlon standings with four events completed but her long-time junior rival Alina Shukh from Ukraine is only 80 points off the lead and poised to challenge for the title tomorrow
Ruckstuhl just missed her lifetime best in the 100m hurdles with 13.98 before equalling her lifetime best of 1.81m in the high jump while Shukh opened proceedings with a lifetime best of 14.46 in the 100m hurdles - one of her weaker events - before improving her season&rsquo;s best to 1.84m and then to 1.87m in the high jump
who won the inaugural European U18 heptathlon title in Tbilisi last season
assumed the lead after the second event before consolidating her position at the top of the leaderboard with 13.87m in the shot put - the best mark of the day - compared to Ruckstuhl&rsquo;s 13.54m.&nbsp;
(from&nbsp;<a href="http://www.european-athletics.org/">www.european-athletics.org</a>)
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Former King Edward VI pupils Callum and George Wilkinson are set to represent England for the first time at the same event – the Poděbrady International race walk meeting – this weekend
have both been selected by England Athletics as part of a 10-strong team – to compete tomorrow in the Czech Republic – marking the first time the two have received international call-ups
Callum is fast becoming a household name in British race walking
having finished seventh at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in the 20km category
on the back of a gold medal in the 10km race at the 2016 World Junior Championships
on Saturday as he takes on his first competitive 20km race of 2019 while George will be racing in the junior event
“Training has been going really well and that’s why I’m really excited to race,” he said
“And it’s the first time both George and I will compete at the same an international event together
It would be great to be close to my Personal Best
Callum set his current PB of 82 minutes and 17 seconds at the course in Poděbrady at the European Cup in May 2017
“I decided to focus on the 20km distance this season which is my third year in the seniors,” he said
“I’ve been focusing on my technique in training
“And I’m hoping to get closer or even catch the Olympic qualifying standard which is 81 minutes
Obviously I would need to bear my current best time by more than a minute which is difficult
is continuing to progress as he targets better times than his brother at the same age
Great Britain has never won a medal at the European Race Walking Cup
but British record-holder and Olympic sixth-placer Tom Bosworth will be looking to change that on Sunday in Podebrady
Bosworth will lead the strongest British team ever in pursuit of an individual medal and a high team placing in the men’s 20km race walk
Building on his huge breakthrough performance in Rio
Bosworth has made a strong start to 2017 by finishing second in the IAAF Race Walking Challenge in Rio Maior in 80:58
On the fast circuit around the Czech spa town that stages an annual international race walking competition
Bosworth will be targeting his British record of 80:13 set in the Olympics
Bosworth’s main competition will come from reigning European Cup and world champion Miguel Ángel López of Spain
although Bosworth finished ahead of him in the Lugano 20km in March
German Christopher Linke clocked a very fast 78:59 when winning in Podebrady last month
while Olympic and world 50km champion Matej Toth will be looking to reach the top of the podium after finishing second in the 20km in 2015 and third in 2013
who has been cleared by the IAAF to compete as a neutral athlete
Other contenders will be Martin Alvaro of Spain (PB 79:36)
2009 European Cup champion Giorgio Rubino of Italy (PB 79:37)
Swede Perseus Karlström (PB 79:11) and Ireland’s Alex Wright
who finished ahead of Bosworth in Lugano and was fifth in Rio Maior
Joining Bosworth on the GB team will be world junior champion Callum Wilkinson
who has made a brilliant transition from the 10km junior event to the senior distance
Wilkinson clocked a magnificent 83:47 on his 20km debut in Lugano in March which was inside the IAAF World Championships qualifying time
He warmed up for Podebrady by winning the British 10km title in Coventry at the end of April
Two-time 50km Olympian Dominic King steps down to 20km as he looks for a good performance over the shorter distance as part of his preparations to represent Great Britain over 50km in London in August
The final member of the British quartet is Cameron Corbishley who
has made the step up from the junior ranks
He clocked 86:00 in the EAA Permit Meeting on the same Podebrady course in April
which was inside the British Athletics qualifying time for the European Under-23 Championships
The current depth of British race walking is illustrated that for the first time ever there is a team of three entered in the senior women’s 20km
Bethan Davies set a personal best of 93:48 when narrowly missing out on Olympic selection in Leeds last year and clocked 95:47 in Adelaide in Australia in March
She is joined by Gemma Bridge who has recently made the full time conversion from distance runner to race walker
Having recently moved to Leeds to study for a PhD and base herself at the National Race Walking Centre she has made a sensational start to her 20km career
culminating in a 95:01 clocking at Poderbardy in April
which was inside the British Athletics standard for London
Joining them will be Heather Lewis who will be making her senior debut in the British team
She clocked a big personal best in Lugano in March of 97:39
Among the favourites in the race will be Antonella Palmisano of Italy who was fourth in the Olympic Games and has a personal best of 87:51
Spain’s Julia Takács who has a personal best of 88:44 and Ana Cabecinha of Portugal who was sixth in Rio and fourth in the 2015 World Championships
Home favourite and former world junior champion and 2014 European bronze medallist Anezka Drahotova will be roared on by a partisan home crowd
Lithuania will also feature in the race for team honours
Chris Snook will make his Great Britain debut in the junior men’s 10km having set a personal best on the European Cup course last month of 44:45
The race for the title will be contested by France’s David Kuster who set a PB this year of 41:31
Italian Giacomo Brandi and Poland’s Lukasz Niedzialek
will also make her Great Britain debut in the junior women’s 10km having also set a PB in the Czech spa town last month of 51:46
European under-18 champion over 5000m last summer
has the fastest personal and season's best of 44:58
German Teresa Zurek has clocked 45:09 this year
while neutral athlete Yana Smerdova has clocked 45:48
There is a relatively small field in the men’s 50km and the title is wide open
The quickest in the field is Ukranian Ihor Hlavan (PB 3:40:39) and teammate Ivan Banzeruk (3:44:49)
Competition for the title will come from German Carl Dohmann
Swede Ato Ibáñez and Irish walker Brendan Boyce
Follow <a href="https://twitter.com/leedswalk" target="_blank">@leedswalk</a> on Twitter for live updates
Runners ready to lap it up at Highgate Harriers Night of the 10,000m PBs
Mo Farah opens final track season with 3:34.19 1500m