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The Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix, formerly known as the Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge, is an annual race walking competition held in Taicang, China. As of 2023, it is a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold level meeting – the highest-level circuit of international race walking competitions.[1]

The meeting is organized by the Chinese Athletic Association, and it is typically held in March, April, or May. There was a domestic race walking competition held in Taicang as far back as 2010, but the meeting became sponsored by World Athletics (then IAAF) and attracted international talent starting in 2011.[2][3] In 2014, it served as the 2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup, and in 2018 it hosted the championship again under its new name 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships.[4][5] In 2024, it also served as the 2024 Olympic trials for China in the race walk.[1] The citizens of Taicang were reported to have a "deep passion" for walking, and the city fielded a race walking team at the 2014 edition.[5]

The competition was cancelled in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in China, and it did not return until 2023, rebranded as the Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix (or National Race Walking Grand Prix).[6] There was a separate National Race Walking Grand Prix in Taicang in the past, but it did not receive Tour / IAAF Challenge status before 2023.[7]

Editions

Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix editions
Ed. Name Date Ref.
1st 2011 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 22-24 April 2011 [8]
2nd 2012 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 30 March 2012 [9]
3rd 2013 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 1 March 2013 [10]
4th 2014 IAAF World Race Walking Cup 3-4 May 2014 [11]
6th 2015 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 1 May 2015 [12]
7th 2016 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 23 April 2016 [13]
8th 2017 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 15 April 2017 [14]
9th 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships 5-6 May 2018 [15]
10th 2019 Taicang IAAF Race Walking Challenge 11 May 2019 [16]
11th 2023 Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix 8-9 April 2023 [17]
12th 2024 Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix 3-9 March 2024 [18]

Winners

Chinese Race Walking Grand Prix senior race winners
Year Men Women Mixed R
20 km walk 35 km walk 50 km walk 20 km walk 35 km walk 50 km walk Marathon race walk mixed relay
2011  Wang Zhen (CHN) 1:18:30  Si Tianfeng (CHN) 3:38:48  Liu Hong (CHN) 1:27:17 [8]
2012  Wang Zhen (CHN) 1:17:36 AR  Liu Hong (CHN) 1:25:46 AR [9]
2013  Li Jianbo (CHN) 1:18:52  Sun Huanhuan (CHN) 1:27:36 [10]
2014  Ruslan Dmytrenko (UKR) 1:18:37 NR  Ivan Noskov (RUS) 3:39:38  Anisya Kirdyapkina (RUS) 1:26:31 [11]
2015  Chen Ding (CHN) 1:19:53  Duan Dandan (CHN) 1:32:21 [12]
2016  Pedro Daniel Gómez (MEX) 1:20:52  Wang Yingliu (CHN) 1:30:51 [13]
2017  Caio Bonfim (BRA) 1:22:16  Lu Xiuzhi (CHN) 1:31:01 [14]
2018  Koki Ikeda (JPN) 1:21:13  Hiroki Arai (JPN) 3:44:25  Maria Guadalupe González (MEX) 1:26:38  Liang Rui (CHN) 4:04:36 WR [15]
2019  Wang Kaihua (CHN) 1:19:48  Qieyang Shenjie (CHN) 1:28:00 [16]
2023[a]  Zhang Jun (CHN) 1:17:38  Wang Zhenhao (CHN) 2:35:17  Liu Hong (CHN) 1:28:49  Chang Xiangkun (CHN) 2:51:20 [17]
2024  Zhang Jun (CHN) 1:17:26  Ma Zhenxia (CHN) 1:26:07  Shaanxi(CHN)
Zhang Xinrui, Zhang Ting
3:01:22 [18][19]

References

Notes

  1. ^ Races were limited to Chinese competitors. There were also senior men's and women's Team 20 km walks, which were won individually by Liu Xing (1:19:58) and Li Yanhong (1:32:30) respectively.
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