This is the first Olympic race walk I have had the pleasure to witness.  With the poor attendance at many venues I worried that the race walk would be poorly attended.  However, the fans of race walking appear to be stronger here in Greece than the fans of many of the other events.  Unlike the half empty stadiums for other events, the streets for the race walk course were lined with fans.  For their reward, the fans of race walking were paid with an exciting race that was a battle to the end.

Unfortunately I have no photos of the start of the race on the track, because it would have taken too long to get from the track to the actual race course, so the Racewalk.com coverage will start at roughly 1K into the course.

The lead pack came around the turn and downhill onto the course like a stampede. The sea of bodies charged forward with the two Chinese walkers, Hongiun Zhu(1389) and Yucheng Han(1346)  leading the herd.

Towering above the field, American John Nunn (3318), pops his head over the crowd. Nunn explained to racewalk.com that "I didn't come to the Olympics to sit and let the race come to me, I came to try to make the race happen for myself. That's when I find out if I have it or I don't"

Escorted by the caboose motorcycle, Tim Seaman (3343) and Kevin Eastler (3256), were content to start in last place.  Tim and Kevin had a plan.  Going through 1K at 4:16, in dead last, both Seaman and Eastler’s coaches had warned of the heat and fast start. After Seaman’s less than stellar 1:30+ performance at the Sydney games, Seaman wanted to ensure that he would not crash.

When interviewed after the race, Eastler admitted that starting so far back was “uncomfortable”, but knew his patience would pay off. Eastler added “It is better to start last, than to finish last.” Having Seaman walk with the same strategy gave Eastler the added courage required.  He stated he “wouldn't have the cojones to go out it last alone.”