Note: Single-source report; awaiting corroboration.
Brian Pintado, Hayato Katsuki, and Alegna González are the leading athletes at the Grande Prémio Internacional de Rio Maior em Marcha, a World Athletics Race Walking Tour Gold event in Rio Maior, Portugal, on Saturday (16).
Pintado, the 20km race winner at the Paris Olympics, recently had hip surgery and is in week 11 of a 127-week preparation cycle for the Los Angeles Olympics. He took part briefly in a race at the Poděbrady Gold Tour but did not finish, marking a cautious return to competition.
Hayato Katsuki, however, is in excellent form. The Japanese athlete took world bronze in the 35km at the Tokyo championships and won the marathon at the World Race Walking Team Championships in Brasília. In February, he achieved a 1:22:06 in his country’s half marathon championships, placing him eighth on the world all-time list, making him a strong contender at Rio Maior.
Alegna González, the Mexican world 20km silver medallist and area record holder with a time of 1:26:06, will make her half marathon debut at the event. She is the leading entrant in the women's race based on her credentials.
Other notable competitors include Perseus Karlström, who posted 1:24:58 in March to win the Dudinska 50, and César Rodríguez, the Peruvian 20km record holder, although both have had mixed recent results. Uzbekistan’s Rasulbek Dilmurodov, bronze medallist at the Asian Championships in March with a 1:25:31, is also expected to contend for a podium spot.