Memories of the Munich Olympics were still vivid when the Waregem Hippodrome opened its gates to welcome the world to the inaugural World Athletics Cross Country Championships in western Belgium on 17 March 1973.
Just six months previously, the watching world had marvelled at the sight of the US phenomenon Dave Wottle &ndash; resplendent in trademark golf cap, throttling from nowhere to 800m gold &ndash; and at the launch of a whole new squadron of Flying Finns.
Lasse Viren&rsquo;s double in the 5000m and 10,000m, Pekka Vasala&rsquo;s 1500m victory, and Tapio Kantanen&rsquo;s bronze in the 3000m steeplechase recaptured the glory days of Paavo Nurmi, Hannes Kolehmainen, Ville Ritola and Volmari Iso-Hollo, when Finland&rsquo;s finest captured 20 Olympic distance titles, from 1912 and 1936.
It was another of the new-wave Finns, sporting a cycling cap in Wottle-fashion, who emerged with the senior men&rsquo;s title from a race overflowing with drama on the Waregem racecourse, some 65km west of Brussels.
Eighth in the 3000m steeplechase in Munich, the willowy Pekka Paivarinta prevailed by 0.10 after a titanic tussle with Mariano Haro, the squat, muscular Spaniard who had finished fourth in the Olympic 10,000m final behind Viren, Belgian Emiel Puttemans and Ethiopia&rsquo;s Miruts Yifter.
The first women&rsquo;s world cross country champion was Paola Cacchi, the Italian who claimed bronze in the inaugural Olympic women&rsquo;s 1500m final in Munich behind Lyudmila Bragina of the Soviet Union and East Germany&rsquo;s Gunhild Hoffmeister.
All 286 runners taking part in the three races in Waregem &ndash; the senior men&rsquo;s 12km, the women&rsquo;s 4km and U20 men&rsquo;s 7km, won by Scotland&rsquo;s Jim Brown ahead of Haro&rsquo;s younger brother, Jose &ndash; were breaking new ground.
An international cross country event had been held since 1903 under the auspices of the International Cross Country Union but the International Cross Country Championships, or Cross de Nations, was contested by few countries beyond the boundaries of Europe.
In the interests of making it a truly global affair, the ICCU asked the IAAF, the forerunner of World Athletics, to take over its running from 1973 onwards.
The inaugural ICCU event, at Hamilton Racecourse in Scotland in 1903, comprised just a single men&rsquo;s race and was contested by 45 runners from four nations (England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales). It was won by Alf Shrubb, the celebrated English distance runner whose 10 mile world record of 50:40.6 the following year stood for 24 years before Nurmi broke it in 1928.
The IAAF invited 150 countries to take part in Waregem. Only 21 accepted: the usual ICCU group of countries plus the USSR, Finland, Germany and Denmark. Just two African nations attended: Morocco and Tunisia.
Having finished runner up to Belgium&rsquo;s Gaston Roelants in the final International Cross Country Championships race in Cambridge the previous year, Haro was determined to go one better and claim the inaugural world title in Waregem
He worked hard to build a lead of 20m before himself and the chasing pack were ambushed by a group of demonstrators protesting for a single team representing Ireland rather than two (Ireland and Northern Ireland). Dressed as athletes, the interlopers wrought havoc.
Haro was pushed into a ditch and Morocco&rsquo;s Haddon Jaddour was punched so hard he was forced to drop out. Rod Dixon, the Olympic 1500m bronze medallist from New Zealand, broke stride to throw one of the protestors into a ditch.
As Mel Watman subsequently wrote in his event report in the Athletics 74 annual: &ldquo;It was greatly to Haro&rsquo;s credit that, on rejoining the race, he set off in such determined pursuit that before long the little Spaniard was back among the leaders.
&ldquo;After four of the five laps, Haro and Paivarinta were locked in conflict some 20m ahead of Dixon. Haro tried all he knew to break away from his gangling Finnish opponent. He succeeded in opening up a lead of 10m with 800m to go, but it wasn&rsquo;t sufficient.
&ldquo;Paivarinta, sporting his cycling cap, pulled that back as the finish loomed in sight and, after a tremendous scrap along the final straight, Europe&rsquo;s answer to Dave Wottle emerged the winner.&rdquo;
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d53ac9802bb15239124de7.jpg" alt="Pekka Paivarinta leads from Neil Cusack at the inaugural World Cross Country Championships" />
Pekka Paivarinta leads from Neil Cusack at the inaugural World Cross Country Championships (&copy; Mark Shearman)
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Both men were given the same time, 35:46. The difference between them was one tenth of a second: 35:46.4 to 35:46.4. Dixon finished third in 36:00 and Kantanen fourth in 36:05. With Willy Polleunis in fifth and Roelants eighth, hosts Belgium claimed the team prize ahead of the Soviet Union and New Zealand.
Farther down the field, in 24th, was Portugal&rsquo;s Carlos Lopes, the future Olympic marathon champion and world record-holder. In 131st (of 148 finishers) was Jos Hermens, the Dutchman who broke the one-hour world record and became the manager and guiding light of the most successful world cross country runner of all-time, Ethiopia&rsquo;s 16-time gold medal winner Kenenisa Bekele.
It was the third time in three years that Haro had fallen victim to formidable Finnish finishing speed, having been one of those blown away by Juha Vaatainen&rsquo;s dynamite last lap in the European 10,000m final in Helsinki in 1971 (crossing the line fifth) and by Viren&rsquo;s world record run over the same distance in Munich
The plucky Spaniard was to finish runner up to Belgium&rsquo;s Eric De Beck and Scotland&rsquo;s Ian Stewart in the next two World Athletics Cross Country Championships. Including the 1972 International Cross Country Championships race, that made it four silver linings in a row for Haro.
As for Paivarinta, a 23-year-old caretaker from Turku, it was his second international medal in the space of a week, having won European indoor 3000m bronze behind the Belgians Puttemans and Polleunis in Rotterdam the previous weekend.
It was to be the only success on the international stage for the European Wottle, though he came preciously close to European indoor 3000m gold in Katowice in 1975, losing out in a photo finish with Stewart, both men clocking the same time &ndash; and won another silver in the same event in 1977, behind West Germany&rsquo;s Karl Fleschen.
On home ground in Oulu in 1975, Paivarinta managed to run his way into the world record books, clocking 1:14:16.8 for 25,000m on the track, but at the 1976 Olympics in Montreal he dropped out of the 10,000m heats and finished 13th in the 5000m. Viren, whom he regularly beat in regional and national events, completed his second Olympic double.
Fifty years on, Paivarinta&rsquo;s 1973 success remains the only one by a Finnish athlete in a senior event at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships. There was a neat historical symmetry to his victory, coming 49 years after the last of the three individual men&rsquo;s cross country races held at the Olympic Games
All three of those were won by Flying Finns: Kolehmainen in Stockholm in 1912 and Nurmi in Antwerp in 1920 and Paris in 1924. Cross country would doubtless have remained on the Olympic agenda had the Paris race not been such a disaster, Nurmi and his rivals having been obliged to negotiate a course that included stone paths covered in knee-high thistles with poisonous fumes belching from a nearby energy plant &ndash; all on one of the hottest days on record in the French capital. 
<div style="padding: 0px 20px 5px 20px; border: 2px solid #adf375;">
<h3>1974 Monza, Italy</h3>
Paola Cacchi became the first back-to-back world cross country champion, retaining the women&rsquo;s crown on home ground by beating Finland&rsquo;s Nina Holmen. The little-known Erik De Beck, a prot&eacute;g&eacute; of 1964 Olympic steeplechase champion Gaston Roelants, took the individual senior men&rsquo;s title ahead of Spain&rsquo;s Mariano Haro &ndash; runner up for the second year in succession &ndash; helping Belgium to retain the team title.
<h3>1975 Rabat, Morocco</h3>
A week after outsprinting Pekka Paivarinta to European indoor 3000m gold in Katowice, Scot Ian Stewart did the same to the luckless Mariano Haro in the Moroccan capital. Future marathon great Bill Rodgers of the US claimed the bronze medal, with fourth-placed John Walker leading New Zealand to the team prize (assisted by 42-year-old Jack Foster in 36th place). Julie Brown of the US won the women&rsquo;s race ahead of Poland&rsquo;s Bronislawa Ludwichowska and Carmen Valero of Spain.
<h3>1976 Chepstow, Wales</h3>
Spain&rsquo;s Carmen Valero of Spain went two better than her third-place finish the year before, finishing 100m clear of Tatyana Kazankina, the future Olympic 800m and 1500m champion from the Soviet Union, in the women&rsquo;s race. Five months before taking Olympic 10,000m silver behind Lasse Viren in Montreal, Lisbon bank clerk Carlos Lopes won the senior men&rsquo;s world cross country title ahead of England&rsquo;s Tony Simmons.
<h3>1977 Dusseldorf, West Germany</h3>
Leon Schots outsprinted Carlos Lopes to take the senior men&rsquo;s individual prize and help Belgium sneak the team title ahead of England. Carmen Valero retained the women&rsquo;s crown.
<h3>1978 Glasgow, Scotland</h3>
Norway&rsquo;s Grete Waitz comfortably claimed the first of her five women&rsquo;s titles, winning ahead of Romania&rsquo;s Natalia Marasescu and Maricica Puica, while 20-year-old Irishman John Treacy emerged from the quagmire of Bellahouston Park as the surprise winner of the men&rsquo;s race. England&rsquo;s Mick Morton won an U20 men&rsquo;s race featuring future Olympic champions Gelindo Bordin (19th) and Said Aouita (34th).
<h3>1979 Limerick, Ireland</h3>
John Treacy produced a tactical masterclass to retain the senior men&rsquo;s title on home soil, finishing nine seconds clear of Bronislaw Malinowski, the Polish steeplechaser who was killed in a car crash a year after his 1980 Olympic victory. Grete Waitz was a clear winner of the women&rsquo;s race for a second successive year, this time claiming victory ahead of Raisa Smekhnova and Ellison Goodall.
<h3>1980 Paris, France</h3>
Grete Waitz completed a hat-trick of women&rsquo;s titles in style, triumphing by 44 seconds, a record winning margin at the World Athletics Cross Country Championships. Long-time leader Nick Rose of England had to settle for third place in the senior men&rsquo;s race, behind the fast-finishing Craig Virgin of the US and West Germany&rsquo;s Hans Jurgen Orthmann.
<h3>1981 Madrid, Spain</h3>
The entry of the East African masters, Ethiopia and Kenya making their championship debuts. Ethiopia claimed the men&rsquo;s team title ahead of the USA and Kenya, despite their first six runners miscalculating their lap counts and sprinting for the line with one circuit still remaining. Mohamed Kedir recovered to take individual silver behind Craig Virgin, with Rod Dixon in third. Grete Waitz resisted the early challenge of Maricica Puica, who had ended the Norwegian&rsquo;s unbeaten record on the roads three weeks previously, to win her fourth successive women&rsquo;s title.
<h3>1982 Rome, Italy</h3>
This time, suffering from injury, Grete Waitz finished third in the women&rsquo;s race behind Romanians Maricica Puica and Fita Lovin. With Craig Virgin&rsquo;s bid for a third senior men&rsquo;s crown having been scuppered by an operation on his only kidney, Mohammed Kedir became the first African champion, helping Ethiopia to retain the team title. They also won the individual and team titles on their debut appearance in the U20 men&rsquo;s race, Zurubachew Gelaw leading the way.
</div>
 Not until 1967 were women officially welcomed into international cross country competition. Doris Brown of USA won the inaugural women&rsquo;s race at the International Cross Country Championships in Barry, Wales, that year, the first of five successive titles for the bespectacled Seattle runner.
The World Athletics Heritage Colletion has recently received a donation of the gold medal Brown received at that 1967 competition and it will go on display <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/heritage" target="_blank" rel="noopener">in the Museum of World Athletics (MOWA)</a>.
One of the great pioneers of women&rsquo;s distance running, Brown was the first woman to run a sub-five-minute mile indoors and in 1987, as Doris Heritage, she became the first women to be elected to a World Athletics committee (other than the women&rsquo;s committee), serving eight years as a member of the Road Running and Cross Country Committee.
Despite being hampered by injury, Brown ran in the inaugural World Athletics Cross Country Championships women&rsquo;s race in Waregem, finishing 15th and leading USA to third place in the team race behind England and Finland.
The individual women&rsquo;s title went to Cacchi. The Olympic 1500m bronze medallist built up a solid lead over England&rsquo;s Joyce Smith, winner of the 1972 International Cross Country event, and finished 13 seconds clear in 13:45. Smith was second and Belgium&rsquo;s Josee van Santberghe third.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d53b55802bb15239124dea.jpg" alt="Joyce Smith leads the women's race ahead of eventual winner Paola Cacchi in Waregem" />
Joyce Smith leads the women's race ahead of eventual winner Paola Cacchi in Waregem (&copy; Mark Shearman)
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With her teammates Rita Ridley in fourth, Penny Yule in 14th and Carol Gould in 20th, Smith led England to the team title ahead of Finland and USA.
At 27, Cacchi was already established as one of the European trailblazers of women&rsquo;s distance running. Between 1969 and 1973, she set eight world records at distances from 1500m to 10,000m.
In 1969, as Paola Pigni, she became the first woman to crack 16 minutes for 5000m, running 15:53.6 in Milan, her home city. In August 1973, she was the first woman to break 4:30 for the mile, clocking 4:29.5 in Viareggio.
While Paivarinta went on to finish 15th in defence of the men&rsquo;s world cross country title in Monza in 1974, Cacchi won the women&rsquo;s race again, making history as the first back-to-back world cross country champion.
Simon Turnbull for World Athletics Heritage

The Waregem Hippodrome opened its gates to welcome the world to the inaugural World Athletics Cross Country Championships in western Belgium on 17 March 1973

50 years of the World Cross Country Championships: the launch in 1973

After a rollercoaster of a 2022 season, Dina Asher-Smith is relieved to have had a straight-forward off-season &ndash; the result of which came to fruition at the Init Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe where she equalled the long-standing meeting record with her 60m victory at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting on Friday (27).
Her joy was palpable as she returned to the German city where she had often raced before. She ran a controlled heat, winning in a PB of 7.07 to finish comfortably ahead of world indoor champion Mujinga Kambundji. Poland&rsquo;s 2019 European indoor champion Ewa Swoboda had won the other heat in a convincing 7.09, though African 100m record-holder Marie-Josee Ta Lou picked up an injury during that race and didn&rsquo;t progress to the final.
Drawn in adjacent lanes in the final, Asher-Smith matched Swoboda&rsquo;s trademark rocket start, but then began to pull away as the Pole tightened up and faded slightly at the finish. The Briton powered through the finish line in 7.04, not only equalling the meeting record set 27 years ago by Irina Privalova, but also taking 0.02 off the British record, moving into the European all-time top 10 in the process.
&ldquo;I always love racing here, and I&rsquo;m so happy to come away with a PB and national record,&rdquo; said the 2019 world 200m champion, who said at the pre-event press conference that she most likely won&rsquo;t compete at the European Indoor Championships in March.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ve had a really good winter, so I&rsquo;ve been really excited to get back out here,&rdquo; she added. &ldquo;The crowd helped me, 100%. The last time I was here it was in the middle of Covid and there was no crowd, so thank you to Germany for making this an incredible meet.&rdquo;
Swoboda finished second in the final, matching her 7.09 from the heats. Kambundji was third in 7.11 and Britain&rsquo;s Daryll Neita was fourth (7.16).
<h2>Hailu, Fayisa and Horvat win close contests on the track</h2>
Unsurprisingly for this early stage of the season, world-leading marks were set at all distances from 800m upwards. But the shocks and thrills came in the form of close finishes.
The women&rsquo;s 3000m had the deepest field of all track events, boasting five global medallists &ndash; all of them from Ethiopia. World indoor champion Lemlem Hailu was perhaps the marginal favourite, but 2021 world U20 5000m champion Mizan Alem ran strongly during the middle section of the race, leading the field through 2000m in 5:53.11.
At that point, world bronze medallist Dawit Seyaum was in second place with world steeplechase silver medallist Werkuha Getachew close behind. Hailu started to move through the field and navigated her way to the lead with two laps to go, but Getachew was starting to make her presence known.
Getachew tried making a move on the inside with a lap to go but was unsuccessful. Hailu, meanwhile, was kicking hard, taking frequent glances behind to ensure she was safe. She did just enough to hold off the steeplechase specialist, winning in 8:37.55 to Getachew&rsquo;s 8:37.98, a PB.
Seyaum (8:39.20) and Alem (8:39.79) were close behind, while steeplechaser Zerfe Wondemagegn completed an Ethiopian sweep of the first five places.
Few people had heard of Abdisa Fayisa before this year, but the Ethiopian teenager made a name for himself with his 3000m win in Karlsruhe.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d6dc6308229f8507e32be2.jpg" alt="Abdisa Fayisa celebrates his 3000m win at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe" />
Abdisa Fayisa celebrates his 3000m win at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe (&copy; Dan Vernon)
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The 17-year-old ran an astute race, letting his opponents do the hard work with Germany&rsquo;s Mohamed Abdilaahi taking on the lead once the pacemakers had done their job. Abdilaahi passed through 2000m in 5:08.25 with Serbia&rsquo;s Elzan Bibic tucked close behind.
Belgium&rsquo;s Robin Hendrix, Abdilaahi&rsquo;s training partner, then made his presence felt at the front of the pack, but Fayisa and fellow Ethiopian Adisu Girma were always positioned well. Hendrix kicked hard at the bell and Abdilaahi began to fade.
But just when it looked as though Hendrix was away and clear, Fayisa clawed back the deficit and caught the Belgian just before the line, winning in 7:40.35 &ndash; a world indoor age-17 best, and the fastest time in the world this year.
Hendrix was second in 7:40.53, an outright PB by six seconds, and Girma was third in 7:41.53.
In the women&rsquo;s 800m, Anita Horvat prevented a third Ethiopian victory of the night.
Ethiopia&rsquo;s Freweyni Hailu went out hard, following the pacemaker who reached halfway in 57.70. Hailu continued to lead through 600m while Britain&rsquo;s Jemma Reekie began to fade. World finalist Anita Horvat, meanwhile, was getting into her stride and making up ground on the long-time leader.
Horvat drew level with the Ethiopian on the home straight and timed her finish well to take victory by just 0.02 in 2:00.44, both women setting indoor PBs and moving to the top of the 2023 world indoor list. Switzerland&rsquo;s Lore Hoffman came through to take third in 2:01.40.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d6dc4908229f8507e32be1.jpg" alt="Eventual 800m winner Anita Horvat and Freweyni Hailu battle for the line in Karlsruhe" />
Eventual 800m winner Anita Horvat and Freweyni Hailu battle for the line in Karlsruhe (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
Elsewhere in the middle-distance events, Britain&rsquo;s George Mills ran away with the men&rsquo;s 1500m. The 23-year-old moved past a fading Adel Mechaal with a few laps to go, then proceeded to open up a clear gap over the rest of the field.
Mills extended his lead on the final lap to win in an indoor PB of 3:35.88, finishing almost a second and a half ahead of his nearest rival, Portugal&rsquo;s Isaac Nader (3:37.29).
<h2>Convincing wins for Povea, Marschall and Vuleta</h2>
All three victors of the jumping events in Karlsruhe won with relative ease, all setting world-leading marks in the process.
Cuba&rsquo;s Liadagmis Povea opened the triple jump with 14.16m, which was matched by her compatriot Leyanis Perez-Hernandez. The latter then went out to 14.45m, while Povea jumped 14.43m. But Povea went further in the third round, setting an indoor PB of 14.64m. That remained the best mark of the day, but she consolidated her lead with 14.52m in round five.
USA&rsquo;s KC Lightfoot notched up his first ever victory at the World Indoor Tour meeting, winning the pole vault with 5.83m. The 23-year-old cleared all of his heights on his first attempt, up to and including 5.83m.
Australia&rsquo;s Kurtis Marschall and Greece&rsquo;s Emmanouil Karalis also cleared that height, an indoor PB for the latter, but they had some failures earlier in the competition.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d6dc9808229f8507e32be4.jpg" alt="Long jump winner Ivana Vuleta at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe" />
Long jump winner Ivana Vuleta at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
With her first leap of the competition, two-time world indoor champion Ivana Vuleta effectively wrapped up the long jump contest. Despite jumping off a short approach, the Serbian sailed out to 6.76m &ndash; a world-leading mark at this early stage of the season &ndash; which held up as the best mark of the day.
Agate de Sousa of Sao Tome and Principe was second with 6.66m, just four centimetres ahead of Germany&rsquo;s Maryse Luzolo.
Elsewhere in the field events, Chase Ealey&rsquo;s winning streak came to an end in the women&rsquo;s shot put.
In a competitive field which surprisingly lacked some truly long distances, the world champion struggled to find her rhythm and wound up sixth with a best of 18.61m. World indoor champion Auriol Dongmo &ndash; the last person to beat Ealey &ndash; produced a fourth-round effort of 18.90m to win by two centimetres from Canada&rsquo;s Commonwealth champion Sarah Mitton.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63d6dc8208229f8507e32be3.jpg" alt="Shot put winner Auriol Dongmo in action at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe" />
Shot put winner Auriol Dongmo in action at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe (&copy; Dan Vernon)
</div>
<h2>Spain&rsquo;s Llopis and Martinez separated by just 0.002 in 60m hurdles</h2>
The men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles had the closest finish of the night as just two thousandths of a second separated eventual winner Enrique Llopis from fellow Spaniard Asier Martinez, the European champion.
Martinez appeared to be marginally ahead, but Llopis came through when it mattered to take the win in a photo finish, both men timed at 7.57.
Earlier in the evening, Poland&rsquo;s Jakub Szymanski and France&rsquo;s Just Kwaou-Mathey both ran PBs of 7.57 to win their respective heats, but they finished third (7.60) and fifth (7.65) respectively in the final.
In the evening&rsquo;s other sprint event, Denmark&rsquo;s Benjamin Lobo Vedel won the men&rsquo;s 400m in 46.45 from Spain&rsquo;s Oscar Husillos (46.63).
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

Asher-Smith equals long-standing meeting record and breaks British best with 7.04

Asher-Smith blazes to British and meeting record of 7.04 in Karlsruhe

A new name will be added to the Osaka Women&rsquo;s Marathon list of winners on Sunday (29) as none of the past champions will be in attendance at the World Athletics Platinum Label road race.
Japanese women have dominated the race in recent years, winning six of the past seven editions. But the presence of Maurine Chepkemoi, Haven Hailu and Meseret Gola means there&rsquo;s a high probability of an overseas visitor winning this year&rsquo;s race.
Chepkemoi and Hailu have raced before, at the 2021 Amsterdam Marathon, where both women set their lifetime bests. Kenya&rsquo;s Chepkemoi finished just one second ahead of Hailu on that occasion, 2:20:18 to 2:20:19, so the Ethiopian will he highly motivated for revenge.
Both women went on to contest two marathons in 2022. Chepkemoi won in Enschede in 2:21:10 and then ran 2:25:12 in Berlin, but finished outside the top 10. Hailu, meanwhile, won in Rotterdam in 2:22:01 but then failed to finish in Chicago.
So this race will be a chance for redemption after both women had somewhat frustrating performances in their big city races at the end of last year. If Chepkemoi wins, she will be the first Kenyan winner of this race since Catherine Ndereba claimed victory back in 2006.
But Gola, Hailu&rsquo;s fellow Ethiopian, should also be in contention for victory. A consistent performer, she has finished runner-up in four of her past six marathons. She set a PB of 2:20:50 when finishing second in Seville last year, and came close to matching that in Berlin seven months later with a 2:20:58 clocking to place fifth, comfortably ahead of Chepkemoi.
There is, as always, a strong contingent of Japanese runners in the field. For many, the focus will be on qualifying for the Marathon Grand Championship &ndash; Japan&rsquo;s Olympic trial race &ndash; in October later this year. To earn a place in that race, the top three Japanese women must finish inside 2:28. Alternatively, if the first six Japanese women finish inside 2:27, they will qualify. Or if anyone places outside the top six Japanese finishers but still runs inside 2:24, they too will qualify.
Yuka Ando is the fastest Japanese woman in the field with her 2:21:36 PB from her marathon debut in 2017. A former third-place finisher in Osaka (2018), Ando achieved podium finishes in Nagoya in 2022 and 2020, finishing inside 2:23 on both occasions.
Sayaka Sato and Mao Uesugi should also be among the leading Japanese contenders. Sato finished sixth in Osaka last year, then went on to achieve a top-10 finish in Berlin, setting a PB of 2:22:13.
Uesugi, meanwhile, will be aiming to continue her progression in Osaka. She just missed the podium in 2021 but set a PB of 2:24:52. She then improved to runner-up last year, setting another lifetime best (2:22:29).
Organisers have made a few changes to the course for this year, which they say is just as fast as the old one, although there appears to be a few more inclines than before. The existing course record is 2:20:52, set last year by Mizuki Matsuda.
<h3>Elite field</h3>
Maurine Chepkemoi (KEN) 2:20:18 Haven Hailu (ETH) 2:20:19 Meseret Gola (ETH) 2:20:50 Yuka Ando (JPN) 2:21:36 Sayaka Sato (JPN) 2:22:13 Mao Uesugi (JPN) 2:22:29 Reia Iwade (JPN) 2:23:52 Sairi Maeda (JPN) 2:25:25 Haruka Yamaguchi (JPN) 2:26:35 Chiharu Ikeda (JPN) 2:26:50 Risper Gesabwa (MEX) 2:26:55 Munkhzaya Bayartsogt (MGL) 2:28:03 Shiho Kaneshige (JPN) 2:28:51 Alice Wright (GBR) 2:29:08 Sakiho Tsutsui (JPN) debut Yumi Yoshikawa (JPN) debut

Maurine Chepkemoi, Haven Hailu and Meseret Gola the leading contenders

Osaka Women’s Marathon set to crown new champion

World Athletics is looking for an Event Operations Coordinator to join its competition and events department.
Reporting to the Head of Event Operations, the post-holder will be responsible for the coordination of specific operational aspects of World Athletics Series events and the Olympic Games.
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/download/download?filename=930be94e-a0ec-4463-8d23-23b3e637151d.pdf&amp;urlSlug=event-operations-coordinator1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Job description and details of how to apply</a> Deadline for applications: 28 February
World Athletics

World Athletics is looking for an Event Operations Coordinator to join its competition and events department.

Job vacancy: Event Operations Coordinator

The 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold series kicks off on Friday (27) with the Init Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe.
<a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/news/preview/karlsruhe-kambundji-asher-smith-ealey-mihambo-hailu" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Many star athletes are in action and a number of exciting head-to-heads are in store</a>. World indoor champion Mujinga Kambundji faces 2019 world 200m champion Dina Asher-Smith and African 100m record-holder Marie-Josee Ta Lou in the 60m, while the women's shot put brings together the top six ranked athletes in the world, including world champion Chase Ealey and world indoor champion Auriol Dongmo. World indoor champion Lemlem Hailu leads a strong line-up in the women's 3000m, and there are competitive fields for the men's 60m hurdles and women's triple jump.
Here&rsquo;s how you can follow the action in Karlsruhe. 
<h2>Follow and watch</h2>
<a href="https://www.leichtathletik.de/termine/top-events/indoor-meeting-2023-karlsruhe/karlsruhe-2023-live" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Live results, schedule and start lists</a> 
A two-hour live stream of the meeting, on Friday 27 January, will be available in a number of territories via the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/worldathletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">World Athletics YouTube channel</a>. The live stream will start at 20:00 local time CET (19:00 GMT). 
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YaE5GJJ2vlo" width="100%" height="475" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
 The YouTube stream will be geoblocked in the following territories: Albania, Anguilla, Antigua &amp; Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Bolivia, Bosnia &amp; Herzegovina, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Canada, Caribbean Netherlands, Cayman Islands, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cuba, Cura&ccedil;ao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Finland, Germany, Greece, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Martinique, Mexico, Montenegro, Montserrat, Netherlands, Nicaragua, North Macedonia, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Serbia, Spain, St Barth&eacute;lemy, St Kitts &amp; Nevis, St Lucia, St Martin, St Vincent &amp; the Grenadines, Suriname, Sweden, Switzerland, Trinidad &amp; Tobago, Turks &amp; Caicos Islands, Ukraine, United Kingdom, United States, Uruguay, Venezuela
 Coverage of the meeting will be available in the territories listed below. Be sure to check local listings - some broadcasts may be live while others will consist of highlights.
<table style="border-collapse: collapse; border-color: #333333; border-style: solid;" border="1" width="80%" cellpadding="2">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">OverSport (OverSport 3)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Albania, Kosovo</td>
</tr>
<tr style="height: 67px;">
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%; height: 67px;" valign="top">Flow Sports (Linear Channel)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%; height: 67px;" valign="top">Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda, Bonaire, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Cuba, Curacao, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guadaloupe, Guyana, Haiti, Jamaica, Martinique, Montserrat, Netherlands Antilles, Saint Barthelemy, St. Kittis and Nevis, St. Lucia, Saint Martin, St. Vicent and the Grenadies, Suriname, Trininad and Tobado, Turks and Caicos</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">DirecTV (VC 618/1618)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top"><a href="https://flosports.link/3fLZBlC" target="_blank" rel="noopener">FloSports (FloTrack)</a> </td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Australia, Canada, USA</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">ESPN (STAR+)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Brazil, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS2)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Bosnia &amp; Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (AS8)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Croatia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">MTV (MTV Sub and CMore MAX)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Finland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">SWR</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Germany</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Cosmote (COSMOTE Sport 8HD and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/otegr" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COSMOTE TV</a>)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Greece</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Charlton (Sport 3)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Israel</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Sky (Sky Sport Arena / channel 204)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Italy</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Ziggo (Ziggo Sport Docu)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Netherlands</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Polsat (Polsat Sport News)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Poland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">SPORT.TV (SPORT.TV3)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Portugal</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Match TV (ARENA)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Russia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Arena Sport (delayed on AS3 until Saturday 22:45 CET)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Slovenia</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">TVE (live on RTVE Play and delayed on Teledeporte)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Spain</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Swiss Sport TV</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Switzerland</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Poverkhnost (Sport 1)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">Ukraine</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 30%;" valign="top">Viaplay (Viaplay UK)</td>
<td style="padding: 5px; width: 70%;" valign="top">United Kingdom</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
&nbsp;
<h2>Social media</h2>
- World Athletics: <a href="https://twitter.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a> | <a href="https://www.facebook.com/WorldAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/worldathletics/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@worldathletics?lang=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TikTok</a> - Init Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe: <a href="https://meeting-karlsruhe.de/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">website</a> |&nbsp;<a href="https://twitter.com/INDOOR_MEETING" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a>&nbsp;| <a href="https://www.facebook.com/IndoorMeetingKarlsruhe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Facebook</a> | <a href="https://www.instagram.com/indoormeetingkarlsruhe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Instagram</a>
&nbsp;

Catch all the action from the Init Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe

How to follow and watch the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe

It seems like just yesterday the 2022 outdoor track and field season drew to a close, but already the first Gold meeting in the 2023 World Athletics Indoor Tour is set to get going with the Init Indoor Meeting Karlsruhe on Friday (27).
As would be expected of one of the world&rsquo;s premier indoor competitions, the fields include numerous global medallists looking to kick-start a year that will be highlighted by the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23 in eight months&rsquo; time.
Their more immediate target, though, is to be competitive at this stage of the season and get an early edge over their rivals.
Given the quality of the women&rsquo;s 60m field, there will be no room for error for anyone looking to reach the finish line first. Switzerland&rsquo;s Mujinga Kambundji will be lining up for her first 60m race since winning the world indoor title in Belgrade last year in 6.96.
Only one other woman in the field &ndash; Poland&rsquo;s Ewa Swoboda &ndash; has broken seven seconds for 60m (6.99), and no doubt the 25-year-old will still be fired up after missing out on a medal in Belgrade last year. But 2019 world 200m champion Dina Asher-Smith is also in the field and has already started the season in good form, clocking 7.09 &ndash; just 0.01 outside her PB &ndash; last weekend in Jablonec.
Ivory Coast&rsquo;s Marie-Josee Ta Lou possesses the fastest outdoor 100m PB of the field with the 10.72 African record she set last year. The 2018 world indoor silver medallist hasn&rsquo;t raced indoors since 2019, but she can never be discounted. Nor can Britain&rsquo;s Olympic finalist Daryll Neita, the European and Commonwealth 100m bronze medallist.
Most fans in the arena, though, will be cheering for Germany&rsquo;s world and Olympic long jump champion Malaika Mihambo, who is using this competition to test her speed. Compatriots Alexandra Burghardt and Lisa Mayer are also in the line-up.
The women&rsquo;s shot put is of an even higher standard and it features the top six throwers in the world rankings, four of whom won major titles in 2022.
World champion Chase Ealey will go up against world indoor champion Auriol Dongmo, as well as European champion Jessica Schilder and Canada&rsquo;s Commonwealth champion Sarah Mitton, who recently threw an early world lead of 19.80m.
Jamaica&rsquo;s 2019 world silver medallist Danniel Thomas-Dodd is also one to watch, as is Sweden&rsquo;s Fanny Roos.
Given the quality of the field, Dongmo&rsquo;s meeting record of 19.65m could well be under threat.
<h2>Showdowns on the track</h2>
It&rsquo;s not just the explosive events where fireworks can be expected. Karlsruhe has produced many fast times and thrilling clashes in distance events over the years, and more could be in store on Friday, especially in the women&rsquo;s 3000m.
World indoor champion Lemlem Hailu, still only 21 years of age, will take on world 5000m bronze medallist Dawit Seyaum, the third-fastest woman in history for 3000m indoors.
The Ethiopian duo aren&rsquo;t the only contenders in Karlsruhe, though. World steeplechase silver medallist Werkuha Getachew, two-time world indoor silver medallist Axumawit Embaye, European steeplechase champion Luiza Gega of Albania and 2021 world U20 5000m champion Mizan Alem should also be competitive.
Spain&rsquo;s European indoor 3000m record-holder Adel Mechaal will test the shorter end of his range by lining up for the 1500m in Karlsruhe. Mechaal has the fastest outdoor PB of the field, but Ethiopia&rsquo;s world indoor and outdoor finalist Taddese Lemi has the quickest indoor PB with his 3:33.59 best.
Two-time European indoor bronze medallist Jesus Gomez and fellow Spaniard Ignacio Fontes, a world and Olympic finalist, are also in the line-up.
Britain&rsquo;s Jemma Reekie, unbeaten over 800m on the World Indoor Tour, will look to keep that streak alive on Friday when she makes her indoor season debut. But she won&rsquo;t have it easy as she&rsquo;ll take on Ethiopia&rsquo;s world indoor silver medallist Freweyni Hailu and Slovenia&rsquo;s world finalist Anita Horvat.
Diriba Girma was the fastest U20 athlete in the world for the men&rsquo;s indoor 3000m last year. The Ethiopian, who will turn 20 later this week, will line up over that same distance in Karlsruhe for his first race as a senior athlete, looking to improve upon his 7:38.79 indoor PB.
Ethiopia's Abdisa Fayisa, the fastest U18 athlete in the world last year over 3000m and 5km, could be one to watch in the men's 3000m. Compatriot Adisu Girma, usually an 800m and 1500m specialist, won over 5km in Barcelona on New Year's Eve and continues his venture into longer distances here. Serbia&rsquo;s Elzan Bibic and Germany's European U23 5000m champion Mohamed Abdilaahi are also contenders.
Multiple world and European medallist Pascal Martinot-Lagarde, embarking on his 15th consecutive indoor season, will get his 2023 campaign under way in the men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles. But the likes of European champion and world bronze medallist Asier Martinez, USA&rsquo;s Aaron Mallett, and 2018 world indoor bronze medallist Aurel Manga won&rsquo;t make it easy for the French hurdler.
Elsewhere on the track, Dutch duo Liemarvin Bonevacia and Tony van Diepen &ndash; who have shared a podium many times as both relay teammates and 400m opponents &ndash; will line up against one another in the men&rsquo;s 400m. Multiple world indoor champion Pavel Maslak, Spain&rsquo;s European indoor champion Oscar Husillos, and Denmark&rsquo;s world indoor finalist Benjamin Lobo Vedel are all in with a shot, too. All five men have PBs faster than the long-standing meeting record of 46.11.
<h2>Global medallists in all jumps</h2>
European champion and world indoor silver medallist Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk of Ukraine will start as favourite in the women&rsquo;s triple jump. USA&rsquo;s world bronze medallist Tori Franklin and Cuban duo Leyanis Perez-Hernandez and Liadagmis Povea could all challenge for the victory, as could Finland&rsquo;s Kristiina Makela.
Brazil&rsquo;s 2016 Olympic pole vault champion Thiago Braz is another athlete who will be opening his season in Karlsruhe. Fellow six-metre vaulter KC Lightfoot, who holds the current world lead at 5.82m, and Germany&rsquo;s European silver medallist Bo Kanda Lita Baehre will ensure the event is highly competitive.
Two-time world indoor champion Ivana Vuleta will start as favourite in the women&rsquo;s long jump. Fellow Serbian Milica Gardasevic, who jumped 6.83m last year, and rising star Agate De Sousa of Sao Tome and Principe should be Vuleta&rsquo;s main rivals.
Jon Mulkeen for World Athletics

Global medallists galore heading to the Init Meeting Karlsruhe

Quality contests in Karlsruhe for first World Indoor Tour Gold meeting of 2023

World and Olympic medallist Femke Bol will make her debut in Lievin, while world champion Gudaf Tsegay will return to the scene of her world indoor 1500m record when the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold event, takes place on 15 February.
Bol won world indoor silver in the 400m and 4x400m in Belgrade last year before claiming medals of the same colour in the 400m hurdles and mixed 4x400m at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon. This season offers the Dutch 22-year-old the chance to defend her European indoor 400m and 4x400m titles in Istanbul in March and before she contests the two-lap event in Lievin, she will also race at the World Indoor Tour Silver meeting in Metz on 11 February.
While Bol will compete in Lievin for the first time, Tsegay already has very happy memories from racing at the meeting.
The Ethiopian world indoor 1500m champion, who also claimed world 5000m gold and 1500m silver in Oregon later in 2022, broke the world indoor 1500m record with her 3:53.09 performance in Lievin in 2021. The 25-year-old returned one year later to win the mile in 4:21.72 and is back again in 2023 for another 1500m test.
Other athletes already announced for Lievin include Marcell Jacobs, Mondo Duplantis, Katie Moon, Jakob Ingebrigtsen, Grant Holloway and Keely Hodgkinson.
For further information on the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, visit the <a href="https://meetinglievin.com/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">event website</a>.

Femke Bol will make her debut at the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting, while Gudaf Tsegay will return to the scene of her world indoor 1500m record 

Bol and Tsegay to take to the track in Lievin

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Shericka Jackson, the reigning world champions in the 400m hurdles and 200m, respectively, will drop down in distance to race&nbsp;Mikiah Brisco and&nbsp;Aleia Hobbs in&nbsp;the 60m at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting, in Boston on 4 February.
McLaughlin-Levrone is the dominant force in the women&rsquo;s 400m hurdles, having won every one of her races in the discipline for the last two years, including the Tokyo Olympic and 2022 World Championships titles.
She also won gold medals as a member of USA&rsquo;s 4x400m teams at the Olympic Games and the 2019 and 2022 World Championships, owns six of the seven fastest times ever run in the women's 400m hurdles &ndash; topped by her 50.68 world record set in Oregon last year &ndash; and was named World Athletics Athlete of the Year for 2022.
Making her 60m race debut in Boston, McLaughlin-Levrone will go up against Jamaica&rsquo;s Jackson, one of the best sprinters on the planet today. Last year, Jackson won gold in the 200m at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon in 21.45, the second-fastest time ever recorded. She also took silver medals in both the 100m and 4x100m and has bronze medals from the Rio and Tokyo Olympic Games in the 400m and 100m, respectively.
This will be Jackson&rsquo;s first time competing at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix and her 60m PB stands at&nbsp;7.04, set in the final of the World Athletics Indoor Championships Belgrade 22.
McLaughlin-Levrone and Jackson will face some top opposition in Boston, as among their rivals is USA's Brisco, who stormed below seven seconds to win world indoor silver last year. Clocking 6.99, Brisco claimed her first senior individual global medal in Belgrade and she heads to Boston to defend the&nbsp;New Balance Indoor Grand Prix title she won last year.
Joining them is Hobbs, the 2022 US silver medallist who finished sixth in the 100m at the World Athletics Championships in Oregon.
These top athletes join the previously announced Noah Lyles, Jake Wightman, Gabby Thomas, Grant Holloway, Trey Cunningham, Laura Muir Ciara Mageean, Katie Moon, Katerina Stefanidi, Mariano Garcia, Bryce Hoppel and Marvin Bracy-Williams.
For further information on the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix, visit the <a href="https://www.nbindoorgrandprix.com/news/196/60/World-Champions-McLaughlin-Levrone-and-Jackson-set-for-60m-dash-at-New-Balance-Indoor-Grand-Prix-on-Feb.-4/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">event website</a>.
Organisers for World Athletics

Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Shericka Jackson will drop down in distance to race Mikiah Brisco and Aleia Hobbs at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix

World champions McLaughlin-Levrone and Jackson set for 60m in Boston

Creators! You know who you are. Do you have a passion for sport? Love being in front of a camera? Got a drive for content creation? Then apply to join the World Athletics Content Creator Programme.
World Athletics is looking for talented and enthusiastic individuals to create TikTok, YouTube and Instagram content for its platforms. We&rsquo;re seeking out of the box ideas &ndash; unlike anything you&rsquo;ve seen on World Athletics channels before &ndash; from creatives, presenters, editors, videographers, stats geeks, pundits, designers and more.
Have you got fresh ideas that can add to World Athletics&rsquo; social media platforms? Or do you just want to showcase what you can do? Apply now, and you could go from creating content at home to being trackside at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest.
<iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/4Hdue5HYGNQ" width="100%" height="475" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>
<h3>Types of content we&rsquo;re looking for:</h3>
&middot; Competition hype videos &middot; Talking heads &middot; Opinion pieces &middot; Competition reviews &middot; Athlete fan-cams &middot; Memes &middot; Statistical analysis &middot; And more&hellip; 
<a href="https://eu.research.net/r/QVHK78B" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Apply now</a>
<h3> Key info</h3>
&middot; The deadline to apply is 28 February 2023 &middot; You must be over the age of 16 to apply &middot; There is no upper age limit &middot; You can apply from anywhere in the world &middot; English does not need to be your first language &middot; You need to ensure you either own the content or, if you use any third-party content, you have permission from the rights owner to do so
<h3>Benefits</h3>
&middot; Have your content appear on World Athletics channels &middot; Grow your own platform. All content that appears on World Athletics channels will be tagged, credited or set as a collaborative post with your own account &middot; Receive access to World Athletics archive footage to aid content production &middot; Be part of a team of creators &ndash; with the possibility of working with the World Athletics social team in Budapest &middot; This is a paid programme* 
*Depending on the proposal. Creators will be paid based on whether it&rsquo;s a one-off piece of content or a series. Subject to contract between World Athletics and the selected creators.

World Athletics is looking for talented and enthusiastic individuals to create TikTok, YouTube and Instagram content for its platforms

World Athletics launches Content Creator Programme

The biggest World Athletics Continental Tour calendar yet has been confirmed for 2023, with one month to go until the first Gold level meeting of the season in Australia.
More than 180 meetings are included in this year&rsquo;s tour, which is divided into four levels &ndash; Gold, Silver, Bronze and Challenger. The status of each meeting is determined by the quality of competition and prize money on offer.
The schedule of Gold meetings has increased by two, with the tour&rsquo;s top tier now comprising 14 events spread across five of the six continental areas. New for the Gold tour in 2023 are events in Melbourne, Grenada and Botswana. The full calendar also currently includes 25 Silver, 55 Bronze and 95 Challenger meetings.
Gold level action will kick off in Melbourne, Australia, on 23 February when the Maurie Plant Meet will welcome some of the world&rsquo;s top athletes to the Lakeside Stadium. Among them will be US sprint star Fred Kerley, who stormed to the world 100m title in Oregon last year and secured Olympic silver in Tokyo. In Melbourne, the 27-year-old will test himself over 200m.
Two months later, the Grenada Invitational will take place at the Kirani James Athletic Stadium (22 April), before events in Gaborone in Botswana (29 April), Nairobi in Kenya (13 May), Yokohama in Japan and Devonshire in Bermuda (both 21 May).
The Gold tour then moves on to Los Angeles, USA (27 May), before events in Hengelo in the Netherlands (4 June), Bydgoszcz in Poland (6 June), Turku in Finland (13 June), New York in USA (24 June) and Ostrava in Czech Republic (27 June).
One month before the world&rsquo;s best athletes compete for global medals at the World Athletics Championships Budapest 23, the Hungarian capital will host some of those stars for the Gyulai Istv&aacute;n Memorial on 18 July. The 2023 Gold tour will then end at the Memorial Borisa Hanzekovica in Zagreb, Croatia, on 8-10 September.
In 2022, 11,793 athletes from 159 countries competed in the Continental Tour, establishing two area records, 118 national records and 2396 personal bests across the 152 meetings.
Highlights included Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce&rsquo;s 100m meeting record and Continental Tour best of 10.67 at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi in May. That would prove to be one of a record seven sub-10.70 100m races Fraser-Pryce would achieve throughout the season.
Femke Bol set a world 300m hurdles best at the Golden Spike in Ostrava later that month, while other big-name winners throughout the season included Mondo Duplantis, Sydney McLaughlin, Noah Lyles and Chase Ealey.
Currently TV rights for the 2023 Gold level meetings have been sold in 140 territories across the globe and for territories where broadcast coverage is not available either live or as delayed highlights, a live stream will be shown on the World Athletics YouTube channel.
<h3>Gold level meetings in the 2023 World Athletics Continental Tour</h3>
23 February &ndash; Maurie Plant Meet, Melbourne (AUS) 22 April &ndash; Grenada Invitational, St. George's (GRN) 29 April &ndash; Botswana Golden Grand Prix, Gaborone (BOT) 13 May &ndash; Kip Keino Classic, Nairobi (KEN) 21 May &ndash; Seiko Golden Grand Prix, Yokohama (JPN) 21 May &ndash; USATF Bermuda Grand Prix, Devonshire (BER) 27 May &ndash; Los Angeles Grand Prix, Los Angeles (USA) 4 June &ndash; FBK Games, Hengelo (NED) 6 June &ndash; Irena Szewinska Memorial, Bydgoszcz (POL) 13 June &ndash; Paavo Nurmi Games, Turku (FIN) 24 June &ndash; USATF NYC Grand Prix, New York (USA) 27 June &ndash; Ostrava Golden Spike, Ostrava (CZE) 18 July &ndash; Gyulai Istvan Memorial, Budapest (HUN) 8-10 September &ndash; Memorial Borisa Hanzekovica, Zagreb (CRO)
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-continental-tour/calendar-results?season=2023" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-cke-saved-href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-continental-tour/calendar-results?season=2023&amp;competitionSubgroupId=3781">Full 2023 World Athletics Continental Tour calendar</a>
World Athletics

The biggest World Athletics Continental Tour calendar yet has been confirmed for 2023, with one month to go until the first Gold level meeting of the season in Australia

World Athletics Continental Tour expands for 2023

On a weekend when indoor action really started to heat up, the World Athletics Indoor Tour kicked off with meetings in Iowa City, Jablonec and Luxembourg, while Masai Russell and Julien Alfred were among the athletes to make their mark at other events in the US.
The Hawkeye Pro Classic, part of the American Track League, opened the World Indoor Tour season on Friday (20) and the two-day Silver level event included wins for Danniel Thomas-Dodd, Alaysha Johnson, Freddie Crittenden and Brittany Brown.
Jamaica&rsquo;s Thomas-Dodd, the 2018 world indoor silver medallist, threw 19.12m to top the women&rsquo;s shot put on day one, while Nigeria&rsquo;s Chukwuebuka Enekwechi improved his indoor PB to 21.20m to win the men&rsquo;s event.
On day two (21), NACAC 100m hurdles champion Johnson took 0.06 off her previous 60m hurdles best, running 7.84 to win the final ahead of Bahamian world indoor silver medallist Devynne Charlton (7.89), while NACAC 110m hurdles gold medallist Crittenden followed his 7.52 PB set a week prior with a 7.53 win to edge Michael Dickson with the same time.
USA&rsquo;s 2019 world 200m silver medallist Brown started her season with a 7.19 60m heat and 7.20 final win, while Olivia Baker took the women&rsquo;s 800m in 2:02.50 and Clayton Murphy the men&rsquo;s 1000m in 2:20.70.
Also on Saturday (21), World Indoor Tour Bronze action began at the Jablonec Indoor event in Czech Republic. There, Britain&rsquo;s 2019 world 200m champion Dina Asher-Smith got her season off to a winning start, clocking 7.18 in her heat and improving to 7.09 in the final, 0.01 off the PB she set in 2015 and matched in 2018 and 2021.
Turkey&rsquo;s Kayhan Ozer ran a PB of 6.58 to win the men&rsquo;s 60m final after a 6.65 heat, while Tomas Stanek threw 21.43m in the men&rsquo;s shot put to triumph on home soil.
Belgium&rsquo;s Tibo De Smet provided the highlight at the CMCM Indoor Meeting, a World Indoor Tour Bronze event, in Kirchberg, Luxembourg, on Sunday (22). Clocking 1:45.04 to win the men's 800m, he improved the national indoor record by more than a second and won ahead of Kenya&rsquo;s Collins Kipruto (1:45.89).
De Smet&rsquo;s compatriot Alexander Doom also ran the indoor race of his life, clocking a PB of 46.20 to win the 400m. Spain&rsquo;s world 110m hurdles bronze medallist Asier Martinez won the men&rsquo;s 60m hurdles in 7.65.
The first World Indoor Tour Gold meeting of the season takes place in Karlsruhe on Friday (27).
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-indoor-tour/calendar-results" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>
<h2>Collegiate records for Russell and Alfred</h2>
A week after improving her 60m hurdles PB to 7.88, Masai Russell went faster still and broke the US collegiate record with 7.75 at the Red Raider Open in Lubbock on Friday (20). The Kentucky athlete, who started the year with a PB of 7.93, improved the previous collegiate record by 0.03.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
COLLEGIATE RECORD <a href="https://twitter.com/masai_russell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@masai_russell</a> 7.75 in the 60m hurdles! <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/HurdleU?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#HurdleU</a> 🚧 <a href="https://t.co/pyZdPkId8m">pic.twitter.com/pyZdPkId8m</a>
&mdash; UK Track &amp; Field (@KentuckyTrack) <a href="https://twitter.com/KentuckyTrack/status/1616522962915717120?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 20, 2023</a></blockquote>
Also in Lubbock, Clemson&rsquo;s Kiara Grant won the 60m in 7.09 to finish ahead of world indoor bronze medallist Marybeth Sant-Price (7.18), while another Kentucky sprinter, 18-year-old Jordan Anthony, ran a PB of 6.55 to win the men&rsquo;s 60m.
Another US collegiate record fell at the Martin Luther King Jr. Invitational in Albuquerque on Saturday (21). Saint Lucia&rsquo;s Julien Alfred already had the 60m record on her CV thanks to the 7.04 performance she achieved last year, but after clocking 7.05 in the heats, the 21-year-old Commonwealth 100m silver medallist improved to 7.02 to win the final.
Behind her, her Texas teammate Rhasidat Adeleke ran 7.20 for the runner-up spot but the tables were turned in the 200m. Racing over one lap, Adeleke improved her own Irish indoor record to 22.52, beating runner-up Alfred with 22.71.
Elsewhere, Coby Hilton stormed to a 60m PB of 6.51 at the UCCS Invite in Colorado Springs on Saturday (21), dipping under 6.60 for the first time.
At the RADD College Invitational in Florida, Kendal Williams won the men&rsquo;s 60m in 6.59 ahead of Josephus Lyles (6.60) and two-time world 200m champion Noah Lyles, who ran 6.61.

The World Athletics Indoor Tour kicked off with meetings in Iowa City, Jablonec and Luxembourg

Strong start to World Indoor Tour, Russell and Alfred make early season statements

Yann Schrub strode to his first World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold triumph, while Rahel Daniel recovered from a fall to continue her winning ways at the snow covered CrossCup in Hannut on Sunday (22).
France&rsquo;s European 10,000m bronze medallist Schrub made a late decision to compete in the Belgian city and it paid off as the 26-year-old overpowered Isaac Kimeli to deny him a win on home soil. Surging away over the final 1500m lap, Schrub won the 9km men&rsquo;s race by 19 seconds and Kimeli&rsquo;s compatriot Guillaume Grimard completed the podium, finishing third a further 11 seconds back.
After three loops of the 1km circuit, a quartet of Kimeli, Schrub, Grimard and Kenya&rsquo;s Gideon Rono broke away on the first of the four 1500m loops. One week on from his Cinque Mulini win in San Vittore Olona, Rono couldn&rsquo;t stick with the pace and was dropped at around the halfway mark. As athletes took on the last couple of laps, the race was down to Schrub and Kimeli.
Schrub had built a five-second lead by the time the bell sounded for the final 1500m loop and increased his advantage to 19 seconds by the finish line.
Taking his sunglasses off and raising a finger in celebration, Schrub won in 28:29, clear ahead of Kimeli (28:48), Grimard (28:59), Rono (29:07) and Britain&rsquo;s Ned Potter (29:08).
&ldquo;My legs felt wonderful today. I knew I was in good shape after a period at the end of last year when things did not feel completely right,&rdquo; said Schrub, who formed part of France&rsquo;s winning senior men&rsquo;s team at the European Cross Country Championships in Italy in December, a race in which Kimeli claimed bronze.
&ldquo;During the past few weeks I have been preparing my next couple of races under the Portuguese sun and this race was a last-minute decision. I&rsquo;m glad it was worth the trip to snowy Belgium.
&ldquo;I do hope to combine both cross country and indoors this winter, yet the main goal remains the summer season. It did not feel like revenge for the European Cross Country Championships, where Isaac Kimeli won bronze and I did not end up on the podium. I respect him a lot as an athlete, given his track record, and today was a nice battle for sure. But most of all I&rsquo;m happy to take the win here, especially with the lovely feeling I had in my legs.&rdquo;
While his Hannut victory was a first Cross Country Tour Gold win for Schrub, Eritrea&rsquo;s Daniel is an experienced campaigner and was on the hunt for her third consecutive win this year after success in San Giorgio su Legnano and Elgoibar.
Sweden&rsquo;s Sarah Lahti and Britain&rsquo;s Megan Keith joined Daniel at the front of the field over the first couple of 1km laps, with Lahti pushing the pace and Daniel happy to follow.
<div><img style="max-width: 900px; width: 100%; display: block;" src="https://assets.aws.worldathletics.org/63cd82905912322becdf9723.jpg" alt="Rahel Daniel and Sarah Lahti at the Cross Cup in Hannut" />
Rahel Daniel and Sarah Lahti at the Cross Cup in Hannut (&copy; Tomas Sisk for organisers)
</div>
Conditions were tough during the 8km race as the snow continued to fall and Daniel slipped, losing some ground. But she got back on her feet and caught up with Lahti and Keith, Netherlands&rsquo; Veerle Bakker completing the leading quartet.
Daniel forged ahead with three 1500m laps remaining but Lahti, winner of the World Athletics Cross Country Tour Silver meeting in Mol in November, matched the move. Taking turns at the front, it was European U23 cross country silver medallist Keith who pushed on during the penultimate lap, but her rivals were never far behind.
As Daniel and Lahti began to drop Keith, the Eritrean had enough left for a final surge that would carry her to victory and she eventually won by four seconds, clocking 28:41. Lahti was second in 28:45, Keith third in 28:49 and Bakker fourth in 28:58, 20 seconds ahead of fifth-place finisher Chloe Herbiet of Belgium.
"The snow and mud made it very difficult today,&rdquo; said Daniel. &ldquo;I really had to dig deep to grab the victory. Halfway I crashed, yet I don&rsquo;t feel any pain.&rdquo;
The result means Daniel will head to the World Athletics Cross Country Championships unbeaten this year, with the 21-year-old next planning to race at the global event in Bathurst on 18 February. &ldquo;I feel ready for my next race,&rdquo; she added. &ldquo;I'm excited for my trip to Australia.&rdquo;
There was a Great Britain double in the earlier U20 races, European Cross Country Championships fourth-place finisher Innes FitzGerald winning the women&rsquo;s race by a minute ahead of her compatriots Rebecca Flaherty, Sophie Nicholls and Hattie Reynolds, and Luke Birdseye claiming men's race victory ahead of his fellow Briton Jacob Deacon and Ireland's Jonas Stafford.
<h3>Leading results</h3>
Women (8km) 1&nbsp;Rahel Daniel (ERI)&nbsp;28:41 2&nbsp;Sarah Lahti (SWE)&nbsp;28:45 3&nbsp;Megan Keith (GBR)&nbsp;28:49 4&nbsp;Veerle Bakker (NED)&nbsp;28:58 5&nbsp;Chloe Herbiet (BEL) 29:18
Men (9km) 1&nbsp;Yann Schrub (FRA)&nbsp;28:29 2&nbsp;Isaac Kimeli (BEL)&nbsp;28:48 3&nbsp;Guillaume Grimard (BEL)&nbsp;28:59 4&nbsp;Gideon Rono (KEN) 29:07 5 Ned Potter (GBR) 29:08
<a href="https://worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-cross-country-tour/calendar-results/7187117/result?eventId=" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Results</a>

Yann Schrub strode to his first World Athletics Cross Country Tour Gold triumph, while Rahel Daniel recovered from a fall to continue her winning ways

Bol faces 500m test, Kincaid keen to kick on in Boston

Full 28-strong Australia team named for home World Cross Country Championships

Asher-Smith and Neita set for 60m at Birmingham World Indoor Tour Final

Hodgkinson breaks world indoor 600m best, Kincaid and Nuguse lead fast times in Boston

Hailu wins Osaka Women's Marathon