What’s new: Seven people have been handed jail time for their involvement in organizing the 2021 ultramarathon race that left 21 runners dead in Baiyin, Northwest China’s Gansu province, state media reported.
Ding Keya, former director of the management committee of the scenic area where the race took place, was sentenced to four years and 10 months for dereliction of duty and accepting bribes, state-run Xinhua News Agency reported Friday, quoting a verdict from a district court in Lanzhou, Gansu.
Ding was responsible for the supervision and management of the race, the court said. It did not provide details about the bribes he took.
The former deputy director of the management committee, Luo Wentao, was sentenced to three-and-a-half years behind bars for negligence of duty, according to the verdict.
Five employees from two companies responsible for operating the race — four from Gansu Shengjing Sport and Culture Development Co. Ltd. and one from Shanghai Saike Information Technology Co. Ltd. — were sentenced to between three and five-and-a-half years for causing serious casualties when holding a large-scale public activity, according to a separate verdict from a district court in Baiyin, Xinhua reported.
The background: Twenty-one people died during the 100-kilometer cross-country race in Baiyin on May 22, 2021, when freezing rain, gales and a sudden plunge in temperature hit the area. Most died of hypothermia.
Twenty-seven local officials were given disciplinary punishment in June 2021 after an investigation found the incident occurred due to “substandard and unprofessional” race organization and execution, including failure to respond to weather warnings and inadequate supplies provided at checkpoints.
Contact reporter Kelly Wang (jingzhewang@caixin.com) and editor Jonathan Breen (jonathanbreen@caixin.com)
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