Running Until Victory

The 2019 Guangzhou Marathon will officially start at the Tianhe Sports Center at 7:30 on December 8. Approximately 120000 runners signed up for this year’s Guangzhou Marathon, breaking a new record in the Guangzhou Marathon history.

Among the registered runners, nearly 80000 people submitted applications for the marathon, which is 15000 runners more than last year. Moreover, 6000 more runners signed up for the half marathon than last year.

As the number of applicants for various events of Guangzhou Marathon exceeds the limit (20000 for marathon and 10000 for half marathon), the organizing committee has decided to choose the participants‘ list of marathon and half marathon by random drawing.

Marathon is a high-load, high-intensity, high-risk and long-distance competitive event. Hence, it has high requirements on the physical condition of the participants. It is expected for the participants to have had long-term running, exercise and training.

Guangzhou Marathon has always been a glory of Guangzhou with high attention from other cities of China and even around the world. It is sponsored by the Chinese Athletics Association (CAA) and the Guangzhou Municipal Government.

The Guangzhou Marathon was first held on November 18, 2012, and it was selected as a silver medal road race event by CAA in 2013. Since 2013, Guangzhou Marathon race track has been mainly set along the banks of the Pearl River, displaying the most featured Lingnan culture, the most historic sites and scenic spots of Canton, and the most fashionable cultural trend. It is recognized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) as one of the most beautiful racetracks in the world. This athletic event held in Guangzhou has received increased attention since then.

Guangzhou Marathon has been approved by the CAA as a CAA gold label road race event in 2014 and has been continuously receiving that title for 4 years. Guangzhou marathon then got approval from the IAAF, became an IAAF gold label road race event in 2018 and became another double gold label athletic event in China.

The registration for 2018 Guangzhou marathon officially started at on June 30 and there were over 90000 applicants when the registration closed on July 30. The registration for this year’s Guangzhou marathon launched at the same time as last year, with active participation and warm response from runners from all over the country. In one day, the number of applicants had reached 72699 (up to July 1), which set a new record for the number of applications on the first day.

As the Guangzhou Marathon becomes more successful every year, the amount of attention and focus given to this event has increased as well. This year will be the first Guangzhou Marathon event as a double gold labeled athletic event, making it a huge leap in the Guangzhou Marathon history.