SAPPORO, Japan (Reuters) - Race walkers on Friday slammed what they called a "terrible mistake" to remove the 50km race from the Olympic programme and accused the "suits" behind the move of not communicating enough with the athletes.

The 50km distance has been part of the Games since 1936 but Friday's race might have been the last at an Olympics. The event has been dropped from the schedule for Paris 2024 because there is no equivalent race for women.