Carlos Mercenario

Carlos Mercenario ( Carlos Mercenario Carbajal; born May 23, 1967 in Mexico City ) is a former Mexican walker .

In 1984 he won the Pan American Junior Championships in 10-kilometer walking and was able to successfully defend this title in 1986. At the Junior World Championships in 1986, he finished seventh. In 1987 he competed internationally for the first time in the adult class and immediately won the Walker World Cup and the title at the Pan American Games in Indianapolis on the 20-kilometer route . There, with María Colín over 10,000 m, Mercenario over 20 kilometers and Martín Bermúdez over 50 kilometers on all walking distances, athletes from Mexico won. At the World Championships in Rome , Mercenario was disqualified. The following year, he finished seventh over 20 kilometers at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul.

In 1990 Mercenario made its debut on the 50-kilometer route and achieved a world-class time in 3:50:10 hours. The following year he won the long distance walking World Cup and the Pan American Games in Havana . In the Walker World Cup, Mercenario was the first walker ever to achieve a World Cup victory over both 20 km and 50 km. At the World Championships in Tokyo , he competed over 20 kilometers and took twelfth place. The following year he started the season highlight over 50 km: At the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona, Andrei Perlow won almost two minutes ahead of Mercenario, who in turn had a one-and-a-half minute advantage over third-placed Ronald Weigel .

In 1993 Mercenario achieved his third victory in the World Cup after 1987 over 20 kilometers and in 1991 over 50 kilometers when he won again over 50 kilometers. At the World Championships in Stuttgart , he finished eighth on the long route. In 1995 he defended his title at the Pan American Games in Mar del Plata , finished eighth in the World Cup and twelfth at the World Championships in Gothenburg . Four years later he finished second at the Pan American Games in Winnipeg in 1999 behind his compatriot Joel Sánchez , winning a medal at the Pan American Games for the fourth time in a row.

Carlos Mercenario is 1.75 m tall and weighed 63 kg during his playing days. He was trained by Jerzy Hausleber .

Best times

• 20 km walking: 1:19:24 h, May 3, 1987, New York City
• 50 km walking: 3:42:03 h, June 2, 1991, San José

literature

• Peter Matthews (Ed.): Athletics 2000. Surbiton 2000, ISBN 1-899807-07-1

Web links

• Carlos Mercenary in the database of World Athletics (English)
• Carlos Mercenario in the database of Sports-Reference (English; archived from the original )