Jing'an marathon one for the ladies, and their boyfriends

Zhang Long / Ti Gong

A total of 4,000 people ran in a sea of tulip blossoms during the 2019 Jing’an International Women’s Marathon held in Daning Park on Sunday.

The runners come from 63 cities in China, and 10 foreign countries including the US, the UK, Japan, Australia and Tanzania.

Of them, 3,000 women participated in the 10-kilometer race and another 250 women finished the 4.5-kilometer race with their boyfriends. The remaining 500 places were for their male counterparts in the 10-kilometer race.

They ran through the park, from its iconic artificial white sand beach to the well-arranged tulip blossom fields.

Wang Wentian won the championship in the 10-kilometer female group, clocking 39 minutes and 15 seconds. Gong Yuanyuan ranked second at 40 minutes and 19 seconds. Third place went to Yue Qinghua with a time of 40 minutes and 56 seconds.

As a women-themed race event, female runners wore pink, a color chosen to raise breast-cancer awareness. Also, every female runner received a red rose.

Of the runners, many couples finished the race hand in hand, including Chen and his girlfriend Tian, both white-collar workers in Jing’an.

Chen said they got to know each other from a fitness club, and he cheered Tian up when she felt exhausted about 2 kilometers from the finish line.

“We hope to raise awareness of women’s health through the event,” said Yu Biao, director of the Jing’an Sports Bureau. “Apart from that, the event gave runners the enjoyment of seeing beautiful flowers along the route.”

Spring is the best time to enjoy tulip blossoms. More than 1.3 million tulips in 40 different species have come into blossom in Daning Park during its annual tulip festival from March 9 to April 7. This year’s festival is free of charge.

The carpet of vibrant colors covers an area of more than 24,000 square meters. There are some special floral designs, including a giant musical score and a colorful lollipop.