Feb 28 (Reuters) - Italy's Francesco Fortunato took nearly 13 seconds off the world indoor 5,000 metres race walk record on Saturday, clocking 17 minutes 54.48 seconds at the Italian Indoor Championships.
The European 20km bronze medallist eclipsed the previous mark of 18:07.08 set by Russia's Mikhail Shchennikov in 1995.
Fortunato, 31, had posted a faster time of 17:55.65 at the same championships last year, but the performance was not ratified due to a technical judging issue.
"I'm satisfied with myself," he said. "I came here to try again and I didn't give up. After the disappointment last year, I felt this was a record I deserved."
(Reporting by Angelica Medina in Mexico City; Editing by Ken Ferris)
