2018 World Race Walking Team Championships has world champion ambassador

Chinese rising star Yang Jiayu (R), who wins the women's 20km race at the IAAF World Championships in London last August, together with the 2012 Olympic gold medalist Chen Ding, unveils the mascots of the 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships in Beijing on January 22, 2018. [Photo: Xinhua]

Chinese rising star Yang Jiayu has been named as the promotional ambassador for the 2018 IAAF World Race Walking Team Championships on Monday.

The championships are scheduled to take place May 5 in the Chinese city of Taicang.

"China is a powerhouse in race walking. Three months later we will be competing on home soil. I hope we can bring more honor to our country," said the 21-year-old Yang, who won the women's 20km race at the IAAF World Championships in London last August.

Yang, together with the 2012 Olympic gold medalist Chen Ding, unveiled the mascots of the World Race Walking Team Championships. The mascots, Jinjin and Cangcang, were designed from images of rice and fish, a nod to the city of Taicang which is also known as "a land of fish and rice".

The two-day competition in Taicang will feature six events, including 20km and 50km races for senior men and women, a 10km race for junior groups with an individual and team title on the line in each event.

"China is targeting at least an individual gold and two team gold medals in the three Olympic events (men's 50km and men's and women's 20km events)," said Tian Xiaojun, an official from the Chinese Athletics Association.

It will be the second time that Taicang hosts the biyearly tournament, formerly known as the IAAF World Race Walking Cup before 2016. China claimed three individual and three team titles in the last edition of the tournament in Rome, Italy.