Paris: Brian Pintado of Ecuador clinched the gold medal in the 20km race walk at the Paris Olympics on Thursday, pulling away from the field in the final kilometer to finish with a time of 1 hour, 18 minutes, and 55 seconds. Moments after his victory, Pintado pulled out a small photo of his two children from his waistband pocket, revealing them as his source of inspiration during the tough moments of the race.
“It motivated me to really give everything,” Pintado said of the photo featuring his son Nicolas and daughter Montserrath.
Brazil’s Caio Bonfim took silver with a time of 1:19.09, while Spain’s Alvaro Martin, the 2023 world champion, secured bronze with a finish of 1:19.11, marking the start of the athletics competition at the Olympics.
Pintado’s victory was his first in a global competition, having previously earned silver in the 35km race at the 2022 World Championships. “It was insane,” he said. “In the last few meters, I realized I was completely alone, and seeing the finish line I just kept thinking, ‘I’m the Olympic champion, it’s me.’”
“It has been tough to be away from my family for four months,” Pintado admitted, “but they were with me throughout the race.”
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The lead changed frequently among a tight group of 15 walkers through the first 13km, but by the 15km mark, the field began to spread. Pintado, adorned with mirrored sunglasses, a scarf from his grandmother, and a silver necklace with a pendant of two runners—himself and his son—extended his lead in the final grueling kilometer.
“I don’t remember how the competition went; I was just focused on my walking and listened to my trainer,” Pintado reflected. “Yesterday I cried because I was scared, but then I connected with my family, and my mother, and they motivated me. I only slept four hours last night because I was so excited.”
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The race took place on a 1km loop along the picturesque Pont d’Alene and under the Eiffel Tower. Despite an early-morning thunderstorm delaying the start by 30 minutes, the walkers were greeted by blue skies and a comfortable temperature of 22 degrees Celsius (72 degrees Fahrenheit) by the time they began.
The Olympic race walks returned to Paris three years after being held in Sapporo to escape the intense heat of Tokyo.
