Toshikazu Yamanishi won gold in the men's 20-kilometer race walk at the athletics world championships on Saturday, giving Japan a clean sweep of the men's walking world titles while sealing a 2020 Tokyo Olympic berth for himself.
A week after Japanese compatriot Yusuke Suzuki took the 50-km race walk gold, Yamanishi overcame Doha's heat and humidity to cross the finish line just before 1:00 a.m. in a winning time of 1 hour, 26 minutes, 34 seconds.
The 23-year-old, a graduate of Kyoto University, increased his tempo around the 7-km point when China's Wang Kaihua made a bold move. Yamanishi overtook Wang by the 9-km point and gradually pulled clear of the chasing pack.
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"A part of me is relieved, a part of me is crushed," Yamanishi said.
"I got lucky because the athlete behind me faded and I was able to pull away. I wanted to win in a more convincing manner. I'll keep working hard in order to win again next year (at the Olympics)," he said.
Yamanishi's gold was Japan's sixth overall at the athletics worlds. It was the first time more than one Japanese was crowned world champion in a single meet.
The men's 20-km race walk featured 52 athletes and started at 11:30 p.m. on Friday in temperatures of 32 C and 73 percent humidity, according to the International Association of Athletics Federations.
