Seriously? According to the Daily Mail, World Athletics is said to have a new project in the pipeline: the launch in the near future of a world athletics championship of a new kind, dedicated to treadmill running. Well yes. The organization's executive director, Jon Ridgeon, explained that work had begun to quickly set up this initiative, with the upcoming announcement of a technological partner, logically a treadmill manufacturer. But he did not reveal any timetable for the realization of the project. "You are an athlete if you go for a 30-minute run on a treadmill, or if you win an Olympic gold medal in the 100 meters. All of that is athletics", suggested John Ridgeon to the British daily. World Athletics would not be the first international federation to create a global competition based on a static practice. World Rowing did it before it with its indoor rowing world championships, contested on ergometers. The UCI has also developed with Zwift a global cycling event in virtual mode.
