Runners participate in the annual Shanghai International Marathon on December 2. More than 30,000 runners participated in the annual Shanghai International Marathon Sunday, the most in the marathon’s 17-year history, according to organizers. Photo: Cai Xianmin/GT

 

A runner pushes a child in a stroller during the annual Shanghai International Marathon on December 2. More than 30,000 runners participated in the annual Shanghai International Marathon Sunday, the most in the marathon’s 17-year history, according to organizers. Photo: Cai Xianmin/GT

 

A runner wearing a Batman costume participates in the annual Shanghai International Marathon on December 2. More than 30,000 runners participated in the annual Shanghai International Marathon Sunday, the most in the marathon’s 17-year history, according to organizers. Photo: Cai Xianmin/GT

More than 30,000 runners participated in the annual Shanghai International Marathon Sunday, the most of any year since the race was first held in 1996, the event's organizer said.

Sylvester Kimeli Teimet from Kenya came in first place, setting an event record of 2:09:01, according to a press release from the Shanghai Sports Bureau. Ethopian runner Feyse Tadesse Boru was the first woman to cross the finish line with a time of 2:23:07, breaking the record for female runners. Teimet and Boru each won $45,000.

The marathon's 42.2-kilometer route ran from Chenyi Square on the Bund in Huangpu district to the Shanghai Sports Stadium in Xuhui district, according to the Shanghai International Marathon's website. The race started at 7 am and the last runner crossed the finish line around 1 pm.

About 18,000 runners in total participated in the full and half marathons, along with more than 5,000 runners from 76 foreign countries and regions, according to the press release. The number of foreign participants in the race was up 19 percent from last year.

Many participants told the Global Times that they were not daunted by the recent reports about deaths during marathons in Guangzhou and other cities, though the light rain in the early morning did make the race a little more difficult. "It was wet at first, but after we ran for two kilometers, the drizzle stopped," said Andrew Ellis, a middle-aged hard-core jogger from Canada who ran the full marathon.

He said the route made the race more interesting this year because of the great views it offered of the city.

"With regular training and by keeping a steady pace, I don't think one will get hurt in a marathon," said Qin Lan, a 30-year-old woman from Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, who jogs 10 kilometers every other day around the city's West Lake.

Qin praised the orderly organization and the ample supply of food and drinks at the race, but she was disappointed that some participants discarded their disposable rain slickers and paper cups along the way.

"I had to expend extra effort to get around the trash on the street. I think some participants could have been more considerate," Qin said.

A total of 12,020 runners participated in the 5-kilometer "Fun Marathon." More than 5,000 staff members and volunteers helped run the event as referees, medics and security personnel.

The Shanghai Sports Competition Management Centre organized the event.