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Record 179 nations to compete in Bressanone
The 2009 world youth championships are on track to set a new participation record for the meet with 1321 athletes from 179 nations to compete.
Almost all of the world’s 193 independent countries and the 20 additional IAAF member states have entered athletes for the July 8-12 event.
The new record surpasses that set in Morocco in 2005, when 177 nations participated in the fourth edition of the world youth titles.
This year's total comprises 45 countries from Europe, 39 from Africa, 36 from Asia, 29 from Middle and North America, 18 from Oceania and 12 from South America.
The coral island of Nauru (Oceania), with a total size of 21km2 and a population of 10,000 people, is the smallest participating nation. At the other end of the spectrum, Russia (17,075,200km2) and the People’s Republic of China (1.33 billion people) are the largest.
A total of 2012 people are accredited for the event, including 1321 athletes (760 boys and 561 girls). The largest contingent is from the USA (51 athletes) ahead of host country Italy (48 athletes). The highest number of officials will be attending from Italy and Romania.
New Zealand athletes will travel the greatest distance to compete, with 18,600km between capital city Wellington and competition destination Bressanone. Nearby micro states in the Pacific will have an even longer itinerary, with travel also a hurdle for countries such as Palestine, Israel and Somalia, due not to distance but to security measures.
Italian athlete Matteo Didioni will have the easiest route to the championships, the sole representative of South Tyrol living within walking distance of the stadium.
The Australian team converged on the Gold Coast yesterday ahead of its departure for the world youth meet this Friday.
The 22 athletes will take part in two days of competition in the final countdown to the event.
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