Veteran race walker Joao Vieira looks set to make a record-breaking 14th appearance at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo from 13-21 September.
Now 49, Vieira has been named on the Portuguese team for Tokyo in the 35km race walk, marking his 14th successive World Athletics Championships team selection since making his debut in Seville 1999.
And Vieira hasn’t merely just made up the numbers in his three decade-long international career. He won a retroactive bronze in the 20km race walk at the 2013 World Athletics Championships in Moscow before upgrading to silver in the 50km race walk at the 2019 World Athletics Championships in brutal heat and humidity in Doha.
In doing so, Vieira achieved his first age-related record by becoming the oldest medallist in World Athletics Championships history at the age of 43, a record that still stands.
“This is the best medal of my athletics career in the hardest race I have ever done across all of my 11 World Championships appearances. A lot of people did not believe I could ever get this far, but I never stopped dreaming,” said Vieira after winning silver in Doha.
At the time, Vieira wasn’t looking too far past the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo which were postponed by one year due to the pandemic. A return to the Japanese capital for the 2025 World Athletics Championships scarcely seemed plausible to Vieira after his silver medal-winning exploits in Doha.
“It was my intention to finish at the Tokyo Olympics but I will consider making one more, to add 12 to the curriculum,” said Vieira.
However, if Vieira wants to become the oldest participant in World Athletics Championships history, he will have to return in two years’ time. That record is currently held by Spain’s Jesus Angel Garcia who also competed in the 50km race walk at the 2019 World Athletics Championships at the venerable age of 49 years and 346 days.