News about Kurt Tank

Racewalking has strict rules requiring athletes to maintain contact with the ground at all times and to keep their supporting leg straight from the moment of contact until it passes under the body. In other words, you have to walk without enabling a referee to deduce that you might actually be jogging or running. In professional races, this is strictly enforced. Race officials, usually positioned around the course, monitor the walkers for any infractions. If a walker receives three red cards from different judges for lifting or bending the knee, they are disqualified from the race. Disqualifications are not uncommon in professional racewalking, even in high-stakes competitions such as the Olympics and World Championships, where the pressure to maintain speed can lead to form breakdowns. The most famous, and heartbreaking, was that of Australian racewalker Jane Saville. Following the disqualification of her lead rival Elisabetta Perrone of Italy in the 20km event at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, Saville seemed assured of a glorious victory in front of a rapturous home crowd - not least because she was a Sydneyite.