Colombia's Arevalo Claims Men's 20km World Race Walk Title 1
LONDON, ENGLAND - AUGUST 13: Eider Arevalo of Colombia crosses the finishline in the Men's 20 Kilometres Race Walk during day ten of the 16th IAAF World Athletics Championships London 2017 at The London Stadium on August 13, 2017 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Michael Steele/Getty Images)

Eider Arevalo of Colombia has claimed the men’s 20 km race walk title at the IAAF World Championships here.

It was the first gold medal for Colombia at this edition of the World Championships, reports Xinhua news agency.

Arevalo, the former world junior champion, recorded a new national record of 1 hour, 18 minutes and 53 seconds on Sunday night, also improving his previous best by 52 seconds.  Rohit Sharma Ideal Option To Lead India In Limited Overs If Kohli Rests, Says Former Selector

Authorised neutral athlete Sergei Shirobokov finished runner-up at two seconds adrift. Brazil’s Caio Bonfim ranked third in 1:19:04.

The final stretch saw a fierce struggle for the bronze with Lebogang Shange of South Africa narrowly missing out on a spot on the podium with a time of 1:19:18.

Christopher Linke of Germany (1:19:21) and Australia’s Dane Bird-Smith (1:19:28) took the next two positions.

China’s Wang Kaihua finished seventh at 1:19:30 beating Alvaro Martin (1:19:41) of Spain by a narrow margin.  Lance Klusener Believes MS Dhoni’s Early Exit Could Cost India Most