Shanghai International Marathon begins under strict COVID-19 protocols

The 2020 Shanghai International Marathon, the only Platinum-labeled road race in the world running as usual this year amid the COVID-19 pandemic, kicked off Sunday morning.

However, only around 9,000 runners – less than a third of the usual number of event participants – are competing this year to reduce the risks imposed by the coronavirus, and the organizers have not invited elite international runners.

This is the first Shanghai International Marathon since World Athletics, the sport’s governing body, awarded it the Road Race Platinum label. And, despite the reduction, the organizers tried to ensure that the participants had a safe and unforgettable experience.

‘We have to prioritize safety and play safely’

This year is the 25th anniversary of the Shanghai International Marathon, but it was very different from the past due to the pandemic.

“We started all the pandemic prevention and control work in May this year,” said Zhou Jin, one of the organizers of the event.

Zhou said organizers have been working with local COVID-19 specialists to set up a detection system to ensure that all registered runners tested negative for COVID-19 and had not traveled to high-risk regions in the past two weeks. .

“We have contacted the pandemic prevention specialists in Shanghai to set up the entire prevention and control procedure in order to work out every detail.”

Professor Zhang Wenhong, director of the Department of Infectious Diseases at the Fudan-Huashan Hospital in Shanghai, was determined that the marathon would be run successfully. His confidence came from the strict control of every detail.

“We assigned a large number of staff to the event and only those who had received COVID-19 nucleic acid tests can work for the event,” Zhou said. More than 6,000 people had been screened for work in support of the race, and many more were assigned to positions outside the race path, including security personnel and community volunteers.

Part of the pre-race work for the organizers was to identify qualified runners from those who have traveled or lived in medium to high risk regions.

“We persuaded some participants related to the risk of quitting. And we hope that the runners can understand that we have to prioritize safety and play safe,” Zhou said.

Additionally, participants were asked to check their temperatures and report to the organizing committee every day for 10 days. Those who did not pass the temperature test could not participate in the event.

The real test begins when the runners line up

All participants were required to wear masks and maintain social distancing when they arrived at the event.

One of the important reasons for reducing the number of participants was to allow the event organizers to mark different starting points for each runner, allowing them to maintain social distancing from the start of the race, rather than the usual crowded mass outing.

Instead of having just one starting pistol shot, this year there were three to divide the runners into different groups.

Supply stations were also lengthened further, allowing runners to safely collect water, chocolates and energy snacks during the race.

Volunteers were ready at the finish line to offer hand sanitizers and remind runners to follow social distancing rules.

Runners who finished their race and rested for at least three minutes to bring their heart rate back to normal received face masks, which COVID-19 prevention and control codes required them to wear.

This year’s Shanghai International Marathon is the first since the event was classified as a Platinum Label road race. For the runners as well as the organizers and the public, it served as a positive sign of China’s continued efforts to overcome the pandemic.