GRAND JUNCTION, Colo.— After setting the Greek National Under-20 record last month, Colorado Mesa University track and field standout Vasileios Salpas will represent his country at this week's World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon.
 
Salpas, who set the Mavericks' indoor and outdoor 800-meter school records in his 2026 freshman collegiate campaign, ran to a career-best time of 1:48.53 at a meet in Chalkida, Greece on July 17, breaking the Greek National U20 record  while earning his spot for this week's World Championships at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field.
 
The meet, which runs from Wednesday through Sunday (Aug. 5-9) will be streamed live on Peacock in the United States.
 
Salpas will run in the first round of the 800-meter discipline on Wednesday at 12:43 p.m. PDT (1:43 p.m. Mountain).  The semifinal round is slated for Friday evening at 6:05 p.m. PDT (7:05 p.m. Mountain).  The finals are on Saturday night.
 
A native of the Greek capital city of Athens, Salpas set the Maverick outdoor record of 1:49.24 in May after earning Second Team All-Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference honors with a fourth place time of 1:49.50 at the conference meet.
 
He also earned the same plaudits during the indoor season and ran to an indoor school-record time of 1:50.66 in February.