The Great Wall Marathon, where runners will tackle more than 5,000 steps and a 70-degree incline in parts, will return on Saturday – as will 67-year-old Henrik Brandt, the only runner to complete all 22 editions of the race.
Denmark’s Brandt, who has traveled to China every year specifically for the marathon, will join more than 2,000 runners from 61 countries and regions in what is said to be China’s most expensive marathon and one of its toughest.
“Because this is where I finished my first marathon, I loved it and decided to come back,” Brandt said after last year’s race, when he finished in seven hours, 12 minutes and 40 seconds. “I can’t stop and I intend to come here at least 25 times.”
Held at the Huangyaguan section of the Great Wall, located about 120 kilometers northeast of Beijing in Jizhou, Tianjin, the full marathon starts and ends at Yingyang Plaza.
The event has three distances: a full marathon, a half-marathon and an 8.5km fun run, a non-competitive run that also includes a section on the Great Wall. A full marathon has an eight-hour cut-off time.
