Yunnan race walker Zhang Jun made his debut in the top eight

Reporter Wang Shan reported that on August 5, the men's 20 km race walk final of the Tokyo Olympic Games was held in Sapporo City, and Cai Zelin and Zhang Jun from Yunnan represented the Chinese team, of which 23-year-old Zhang Jun played well in his Olympic debut, ranking 8th with a time of 1 hour, 22 minutes and 16 seconds.

In the race walking final, the Chinese team sent Wang Kaihua, Cai Zelin and Zhang Jun to play. In the afternoon, the temperature in Sapporo was close to 30 degrees Celsius, and the physical temperature was close to 39 degrees Celsius, which was no small challenge for long-distance runners. After the starting gun sounded, the 57 competitors walked only 1 kilometer before sweating. In the 8th kilometer, the humid and hot environment caused many runners to cramp and withdraw, and Wang Kaihua maintained a leading position in the first group. In the 10th kilometer, Zhang Jun suffered a sudden situation of nosebleeds, but he did not affect the race after a simple treatment and continued to remain in the 10th position. At this time, Cai Zelin was suspected of having a cramp or strain in his left leg and gradually withdrew from the second group. In the 12th km, Wang Kaihua's physical fitness dropped, and in the 51st minute, he was overtaken by Italy's Stano and two Japanese athletes. In the last 4 kilometers, the gap between Chinese athletes and the first group widened, and the opportunity to compete for medals was basically lost. In the end, Stano won the championship in 1 hour, 21 minutes and 05 seconds, and the two Japanese players won the second and third places. Wang Kaihua finished 7th with a time of 1 hour, 22 minutes and 03 seconds.

Li Jianbo, the leader of the Yunnan Provincial Race Walking Team, said after the game that the three players of the Chinese team all have the level of impact medals, that is, there is a slight shortage of on-site response in the competition. Zhang Jun's head coaches Chen Helin and Li Jianbo both affirmed Zhang Jun's performance at the Tokyo Olympic Games, "Zhang Jun is a very talented athlete, he won the 8th place in the first Olympic Games, and after accumulating more experience, his performance in the next Olympic Games will definitely be better." Li Jianbo said.

Source: Kunming Daily