Trail running has boomed in China over the last 15 years. The world’s second most populous nation saw a huge upsurge in interest and participation, with the number of events going from virtually nothing in 2010 to somewhere in the region of 500 by 2019. The only way, it seemed, was up.
Just when all was in full swing, a double sucker-punch took the wind of out the sails. First the Covid-19 pandemic, which saw races cancelled across the board. Then, in May 2021, tragedy struck the Gansu ultramarathon in north-western China. A brutal change in the weather in the remote, mountainous landscape between checkpoints 2 and 3 led to the deaths of 21 out of the 172 runners taking part. Organizer negligence was blamed for the tragedy, five individuals were jailed, a review of ultramarathons in China was launched and there were no races for almost a year afterwards.
