More than 30,000 runners competed in the Baoji Marathon, and many competition records were refreshed

China News Service, Baoji, Shaanxi, October 25 (Reporter Zhang Yichen) The 2026 Baoji Marathon kicked off on the 25th. 31,000 runners started from the Municipal Administrative Center Square, headed west along the Weishui River, and ran into the ancient Chencang in late autumn, learning about this thousand-year-old city while running.

With the theme of "Take the lead in a thousand-year treasure land", this event is hosted by the Shaanxi Provincial Sports Bureau and the Baoji Municipal People's Government, certified by the Chinese Athletics Association and the Shaanxi Provincial Athletics Association, hosted by the Baoji Municipal Sports Bureau, and operated by Weiying Event Operations Co., Ltd. The event is a Category A event of the Chinese Athletics Association, with two events: marathon and half marathon, including 11,000 people for the full marathon and 20,000 people for the half marathon.

In the four years since its establishment, the Baoji Marathon has been regarded by runners as the "fastest track" to refresh personal bests due to its flat track and suitable climate. This year, the event organizing committee has worked harder on the racing attributes: the classic route "goes out of bends and takes straight lines", reducing 4 turning points, and using the "blue line pilot" throughout the entire course to demarcate the shortest route; expanding the half marathon end area to improve the comfort of the finish; implementing mixed divisions and three-gun starts to allow elite runners and mass runners to start smoothly at their own pace.

After fierce competition, Wang Jiahao won the men's championship of the full marathon in 2 hours, 12 minutes and 33 seconds, breaking the competition record. Pan Yuanchen won the women's championship of the full marathon in 2 hours, 40 minutes and 51 seconds. The men's and women's half marathon championships were won by Mao Piao and Zhao Chaoyun in 1 hour, 05 minutes and 59 seconds and 1 hour, 14 minutes and 32 seconds respectively. At the same time, both men also set new tournament records.

It is worth mentioning that in addition to the competition of speed and endurance, 25 unique cultural gas stations were laid out along the track, with high-pitched Qin opera, sonorous gongs and drums, colorful Shehuo facial makeup, and intangible cultural heritage performances. The entire track turned into a flowing "Xifu Cultural Corridor." Runners start from the Administrative Center Square, pass through the main city fireworks via Jintai Avenue and Jinger Road, cross the Shengli Bridge and Phoenix Bridge to enjoy the "Bridge City" style, and pass by the Chinese Stone Drum Garden, Baoji Bronze Museum, and Chencang Old Street to touch the cultural heritage of the Zhou and Qin Dynasties. The origin of civilization "Zhai Zizhong" in He Zun's inscription three thousand years ago is in the same frame as the city today under the runners' feet.

The relevant person in charge of the event organizing committee said that behind the popularity of the event is Baoji's increasingly solid sports background. As of the end of 2025, the city has more than 14,000 sports venues of various types, with a total area of ​​8.568 million square meters, and a per capita sports venue area of ​​2.66 square meters. An average of more than 500 mass events are held annually. Local event IPs such as the Baoji Marathon, the "Lily Cup" Table Tennis League, and the Weihe Fitness Corridor Cycling Race continue to be out of the circle, becoming an important platform to promote national fitness and promote cultural and tourism consumption.