Two days of rest are over and the Budapest World Championships at the National Athletics Centre will roar back to life this Wednesday with a double session. Eleven Spaniards are set to compete, with Mario García Romo positioned as the leading figure. The morning showcase features the traditional 35-kilometer race walk for both men and women, a stage where a podium finish feels highly possible and could be plural in number.
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On Wednesday, the Salamanca native who trains in Boulder, Colorado, eyes a breakthrough in the 1,500 meters. He comes off a fourth-place finish at last year’s Eugene World Championships, chasing a podium ahead of Mohamed Katir. The final is scheduled for 21:20, with a showdown against his training partner and friend Yared Nuguse, the Ethiopian-American who moved to the U.S. before this gifted midfielder reached adulthood.
Mario García Romo in the Spotlight Amid a Busy Day
Even with other strong challengers in the mix, including Kenya’s Abel Kipsang and Britain’s Kerr and Gourley, the pre-race buzz centers on Jakob Ingebrigtsen of Norway. The young prodigy, still riding momentum after a stumble by Jake Wightman in the last World Cup, remains the top favorite as the day unfolds.
The afternoon schedule features a robust lineup; five Spaniards will compete in the morning rounds, beginning with a demanding heat where only the top three finishers in each of seven races plus the next three fastest times advance to the semi-finals. The drama starts with national champion Lorea Ibarzabal racing in heat one at 10:05, with British standout Keely Hodgkinson serving as a benchmark. Heat two follows at 10:13 p.m. featuring Daniela García, European under-23 champion, alongside Kenyan Mary Moraa. Heat six at 10:45 p.m. will see Lorena Martín return after a significant injury, with Australia’s Bisset standing as a formidable foe.
Two minutes into the clock, a familiar name; Jaime Guerra, one of Spanish athletics’ brightest hopes, will chase a World Cup dream in the morning’s action. The Catalan athlete has shown growth this season, recording an 8.14-meter long jump and pushing for a place among the top 12 to reach the finals. Contenders from around the world include Greek star Tentoglou, Jamaican Gayle, and rising talents from India such as Aldrin and Sreeshankar.
In the 100 meters, the Barcelona athlete Jael Bestue will contest the evening heat at 11:50 p.m., the first sprint of the night in a schedule altered by scorching conditions. The format remains the same: the top three finishers from each heat plus the next fastest times advance to the next round, a test that Bestue hopes to meet as the personal bests shift under pressure.
Two hours of competition later, Mary Vincent will step back into the spotlight in the long jump arena. A two-centimeter miss in the finals left her out in the shadows, but she remains focused on improving by attempting a triple jump at 19:10, needing to surpass her personal best by a handful of centimeters to secure a place among the top 12. The outlook for Budapest includes a strong return for her next season, as she already holds a solid qualification to compete on this stage again.
In the afternoon, Laura Redondo will carry Spain’s hopes into a difficult hammer throw qualification round. Having secured a 71.01-meter mark this season and aiming toward a personal best near 72 meters, she stands on the cusp of a first grand final in Group A, with the potential to advance if her distances stay consistent. The field remains tough, and the quest for a spot in the final continues into the late hours of the competition.
The women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase field will determine who advances to the finals. The top five from each semi-final will move on. The new absolute national champion Marta Serrano will run in the same race as Kenyan record holder Beatrice Chepkoech, while former Barcelona athlete Carolina Robles is set to race alongside Ethiopia’s Almayew and the fastest Spaniard ever in this discipline. Irene Sánchez-Escribano, currently dealing with doping-related scrutiny, will close the round in the company of Kenyan star Jackline Chepkoech as the heat for the evening final starts to take shape.
Across the stadium, anticipation runs high for the afternoon sessions as athletes push toward the semifinals and beyond. The day’s results will set the trajectory for Spain’s continued presence among Europe’s sprinting and field event specialists, all while national pride fuels a gathering of fans and supporters who travel far to witness the action in Budapest.
As the event unfolds, the focus remains on performances worthy of Olympic-style intensity and a persistent drive to push personal and national boundaries in track and field.