Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Brian Pintado, Hayato Katsuki, and Alegna González headline the Grande Prémio Internacional de Rio Maior em Marcha, a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold meeting in Rio Maior, Portugal. Perseus Karlström is also expected to compete, planning to race the half marathon twice within eight days, after finishing 12th at the Poděbrady Gold Tour race last week. Ecuador's Glenda Morejón, who placed 11th in Poděbrady in her first race of the year, is another athlete to watch.
Pintado, known for his 20km win at the Paris Olympics, briefly appeared in Poděbrady but withdrew after about 1km, as he continues recovering in the 11th week of a 127-week plan toward the Los Angeles Olympics following hip surgery last year. This event may be a cautious step back into competition for him.
In contrast, Japan’s Hayato Katsuki is in strong form. Having secured bronze in the 35km at the Tokyo World Championships and winning the marathon at the World Race Walking Team Championships in Brasília, he holds the eighth-best all-time half marathon race walk at 1:22:06. This time places him well ahead of other competitors at Rio Maior, with Karlström’s best recent time at 1:24:58 and César Rodríguez also seen as a strong contender despite limited racing.
Mexico’s Noel Chama, another athlete who did not finish in Poděbrady but won at the USATF Championships in January with 1:27:28, and Uzbekistan’s Rasulbek Dilmurodov, who took bronze at the Asian Championships with 1:25:31, are both viewed as potential podium finishers.
Among the women, Alegna González will make her half marathon debut. The Mexican world 20km silver medallist set an area record of 1:26:06 in Tokyo and is considered significantly stronger on paper than the rest of the field. Viviane Lyra, who completed a 1:41:24 half marathon at a recent Gold Tour event, and Antigoni Ntrismpioti are also scheduled to compete.