Colombian Santiago Vásquez sets 200m world record — The Rio Times

Colombian athlete Santiago Vásquez set a world record in the 200-meter roller speed skating event at the World Skate Games in Asunción, Paraguay. In qualifying for the senior men's time trial, he covered the distance in 17.108 seconds, The Rio Times reports.

Victory after the record

In the final, Vásquez posted a time of 17.133 seconds and won the gold medal. Spain's Joan Guzmán took silver with a result of 17.215 seconds. Colombian John Tascon Olguín won bronze after beating American Jacob Melton in an additional heat.

Another world record in qualifying was set by Yvonne Noces Gallardo of El Salvador: in the women's 200-meter race, she finished in 18.389 seconds. However, Colleen Castro of Colombia won the final with a time of 18.425 seconds. It was her third consecutive world championship title in this discipline. Her compatriot Geiny Pájaro finished second, while Noces Gallardo was third.

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Five gold medals for Colombia

On the first day of competition, October 10, Colombia's national team won five of the eight titles in roller speed skating. The team won 10 of the 24 medals in total: five gold, three silver and two bronze.

Gabriela Rueda won the senior women's 5,000-meter points race with 11 points. In the junior category, Mariana Imitola Vásquez won the women's 5,000-meter points race with 33 points, while Emanuel Ramos Mosquera was the best among junior men in the 200-meter event with a time of 17.615 seconds.

Track events were scheduled to continue on October 11 with the 500-meter sprint and 10,000-meter elimination races. Road events in central Asunción were scheduled for October 14 and 15.