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In athletic circles, Finland is more renowned for its distance runners
and javelin throwers than for its race walkers. An exception to this
rule was Valentin Kononen, who made an impressive name for himself in
the 50km walk during the 1990s. Kononen broke 4 hours for the first
time in 1990, and later that year came 6th in his first European
Championships in Split. In 1991, Kononen finished 5th at the World
Championships in Tokyo, and then 7th the following year at the Barcelona
Olympic Games. At the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart, Valentin
captured the silver medal in 3hr 42min 02sec, over 6 minutes under his
previous personal best. At the 1994 European Championships in Helsinki,
Kononen was heavily supported by the partisan crowd, and although he
was lying a close second after 15km, he eventually faded to a 7th place
finish.
Kononen undoubtedly had his best year in 1995, where he came
third in the 50km walk at the IAAF World Race Walking Cup at Beijing in
April, behind Chinese walker Zhao Yongsheng. Later in the year, at the
World Championships in Gothenburg on 10 August, Zhao attempted to repeat
his World Cup triumph, taking the race out at a terrific pace. Kononen
caught Zhao after 32km, and then gradually broke clear, going on to win
the gold medal (see photo above) in 3hr 43min 42sec.
Unfortunately, Valentin could not capitalise on this success, and he
finished 7th at the following year's Olympic Games, and 9th in the next
World Championships in 1997, before bouncing back to win the silver
medal at the 1998 European Championships in Budapest. Kononen's
performances in major championships went backwards after that, as he
failed to finish at the 1999 World Championships in Seville, and was
disqualified at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games. (Ron Casey)
PERSONAL BEST TIMES.
5,000 Metres Race Walk 18:52.24 Lapinlahti 25 JUN 1995
10,000 Metres Race Walk 39:23.44 Helsinki 26 AUG 1995
20,000 Metres Race Walk 1:22:22.6 Bergen 08 MAY 1993
20 Kilometres Race Walk 1:20:42 Heinola 07 MAY 2000
30 Kilometres Race Walk 2:07:37 Mollet del Vallés 25 JAN 1998
50 Kilometres Race Walk 3:39:34 Dudince 25 MAR 2000
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