Olympic race walker Jessica Ching eyes World Championships after successful 35km debut in Australia

Olympic race walker Jessica Ching makes stunning debut at Australian 35km Race Walk Championships in Melbourne

Despite gruelling temperatures that ranged from 10 degrees to 30 degrees, city’s top race put herself in top spot for 2023 World Championships

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Jessica Ching made her first 35km race walking at the Australian 35km Race Walk Championships in Melbourne. Photo: Handout

Published: 9:15am, 5 Dec 2022

Olympic race walker Jessica Ching Siu-nga set a new mark for Hong Kong after finishing second in her debut at the Australian 35km Race Walk Championships in Melbourne on Sunday, bolstering her chances of competing in the 2023 World Championships.

The race pitted two Tokyo Olympians, Ching, who finished 35th in Tokyo and Australian Rebecca Henderson, 38th in Tokyo, against each other at Fawkner Park in temperatures that hit 30 degrees.

The Hongkonger fell to second place with a four-minute gap at halfway after the two of them battled toe-to-toe for the first 10km.

In the final leg of the race Ching picked up her pace to finish second in three hours, two minutes, and 20 seconds. The more experienced Henderson placed first in 3:01.38, with the other two competitors, Jemima Montag of Australia and Anett Torma of Hungary, failing to finish the race.

Jessica Ching in training session with head athletics coach Anthony Giorgi at the Hong Kong Sports Institute. Photo: Nora Tam

“I’m good at my physical side, it was mainly the heat that affected my performance,” the 35-year-old said. “The weather here fluctuated so much, when I arrived on Wednesday it was around 10 degrees in the morning and today it was around 25 to 30 degrees.”