Chinese marathon trio to ignite hope at London Olympics

By Sportswriter Ji Ye

XIAMEN, Southeast China, Jan. 2 -- "Chinese women marathon trio, represented by BaiXue, Zhou Chunxiu and Zhu Xiaolin, will ignite the hope of winning the gold medal at the London Olympics," said Du Zhaocai, the director of China's track and field sports management center, during the 2010 Xiamen International Marathon here on Saturday.

With Ethiopia's Baysa Atsede first crossing the line, Chinese women runners' dominant position in this annual marathon event was shaky this year due to the absence of a handful of national elite runners. Despite of that, Du was still confident about Chinese women marathon's future, based on the record set by the trio and other runners as well.

Bai Xue shocked the world last August when she cruised to a solid victory at Berlin. The 21-year-old collected China's first gold medal in marathon at the world championships. Bai followed up with a victory at the Beijing International Marathon last October.

"Bai is a talent runner at a young age. Her record in recent years has convinced us the possibility of bringing a gold medal from London," said Du.

Beijing Olympics bronze medalist Zhou Chunxiu, at the age of 32, is another competitive runner of the Chinese marathon team. Zhou is a three-time winner here (2003, 2004, 2005) and a former London Marathon champion. She finished fourth at both the world championships and the Beijing International Marathon.

Zhu Xiaolin, whose personal best was 2:23:57, finished fourth at the Beijing Olympics. The 26-year-old is in the peak era of her marathon career.

"Bai, Zhou and Zhu represent the excellent runners in different ages. Have the trio prepared well ahead of the London Olympics, they could have a shot at the gold medal," added Du.

Concerning the age of Zhou, Du reckoned that as the training system becomes more scientific, career of athlete could extend as well. "For example, Tomescu from Romanian gained the gold medal at the Beijing Olympics at the age of 38".

Teenager Sun Weiwei (PB 2:25:15) and Zhu Yingying (PB 2:28:47 ),the winners at Xiamen in 2006 and 2008, form the top Chinese women's marathon contingent together with the trio. Chinese marathon squad towards the London Olympics is therefore well-structured in terms of both age and capability.