Chinese walkers start strong in Women's 20km Walk

Chinese walker takes the leading place at the beginning of the race.Photo Gallery>>(BEIJING, April 18) -- Chinese walkers are leading the pack after the first half of the Women's 20km Walk in the 2008 IAAF Race Walking Challenge, which started at 3:00 p.m. today at National Stadium in Beijing.

Liu Hong, Jiang Qiuyan and Yang Mingxia of China have all posted a 10km time of 44:54. Clocking 8:53, 17:52, 26:53, 35:54 and 44:54 at the end of each 2km interval, the leader, Liu Hong from China, was a gold medal favorite coming into the competition.

Six countries are represented by the event's 43 participants, including China, Australia, Japan, Mongolia, Sri Lanka, El Salvador. The Race Walking Challenge is the first competition to take place inside National Stadium.

Race walkers must follow two requirements throughout the race: 1) The walker must have at least one foot on the ground at all times and 2) The advancing leg must be kept straight.