Heel and Toe 2012/2013 Number 23 - Victorian Race Walking Club

Luke Adams near the lead early in the men's 20km raceRegan Lamble (third from right) follows a long row of Chinese walkers in the women's 20km raceThe performances of the four Australians are discussed on the AA website. In particular, Rachel Tallent walked the race of her life,going through the 10km mark in a PB of 47:00 and then hanging on gamely to record a big PB time of 1:34:53, an all important Aqualifier for the World champs. The AA report readsAustralian success at the IAAF World Race Walking Challenge in Taicing (CHN) has continued in 2013, with ReganLamble (Vic) and Rachel Tallent (Vic) both walking women’s 20km walk A-qualifiers for the IAAF World Championships.Crossing the line below the required 1:36:00, Lamble stopped the clock in an impressive 1:34:03, with Tallent hot on herheels in 1:34:55. Lamble’s performance comes just days after having to withdraw mid-race from the Australian 20kmRacewalking Championships while Tallent has enviably achieved an open-age qualifier less than twelve months afterconcluding her youth Australian representation at the IAAF World Junior Championships in Barcelona (ESP). Both coachedby Brent Vallance, the Canberra-based duo have now both qualified for selection to the Australian Flame in their first year assenior athletes.Lamble said: “I’ve got a pretty good record here now, I did my first A-Qualifier here in 2011 and it’s a really excitingenvironment to race in. There was something like 110 Chinese athletes out there with us and that’s makes the racing reallyexciting and the opportunity to walk quickly that little bit easier. Rachel’s walk was amazing. It is a huge improvement forher after a great B-qualifying walk at the Australian Championship in Hobart last week. I’m so proud she has been able towalk the time less than a year after being a junior walker at the World Juniors in Spain.”In the men's event, three-time Olympic medallist Jared Tallent (Vic) walked an impressive 1:21:04 to finish third. He wasjoined in the event by Luke Adams (NSW), who clocked 1:24.07 to finish 10 th in the Challenge.CHINESE NATIONAL RACEWALKING CHAMPIONSHIPS, TAICANG, 1-2 MARCHAs mentioned above, the Chinese National Roadwalking Championships were held alongside the IAAF Challenge events in Taicanglast Friday and then continued on Saturday.6