Some countries this year in view of the double commitment of the World Race Walk Team Championships and the European Championships have preferred to select their team on a 35km test.
To facilitate our readers, we have decided to publish this list, updated to date, but limiting to the performance below 2:40:00.
European list 35km men
If, as we have already said, in these Championships the 20km has quite flat values, a possible prediction on the male 50km is even more difficult.
To complicate it again the absence of Yohann Diniz (FRA) that in Zurich had thrilled with the on the incredible race that had led him to the world record.
But "ready-go and in the head until the finish line" we had already seen this year at Dudince and done not by any one, but by Matej Toth (SVK) to return to the races after suffering, especially psychological to prove his extraneousness to the fact that he was accused of an anomaly in the biological passport. Toth had done a masterly race and had the time of 3:42:46 that today is the best performance on the world 50km excluding the mark obtained by Sergey Bakulin (RUS) in Cheboksary, but wouldn't be able to compete.
If Matej Toth should repeat that kind of competition in Berlin, we believe that there can be no doubt about the gold medal.
If, as it seems, even Perseus Karlstrom (SWE) opts for the 50km instead of competing on 20km, the game for the medals should cover six / seven athletes:
- Veli-Matti Partanen (FIN) recently won the 20km Finladia Championships in 1:26:45
- Maryan Zakalnytskyy and Ivan Banzeruk (UKR) in particular the first of the two
- Rafal Augustyn (POL)
- Perseus Karlstrom (SWE)
- Marco de Luca (ITA) and team-mate Michele Antonelli (ITA) who, however, should make a very important improvement in the personal best.