Chinese woman completes North Pole Marathon, setting new Guinness World Record
In the North Pole Marathon, a 56-year-old Chinese woman completed the full 42.195-kilometer course. As a member of a five-person team, she co-set the Guinness World Record for the fastest team finish in the inaugural North Pole Marathon, Shangyou News reported.
With this achievement, she became the first Chinese woman in the world to complete the challenges of summiting the highest peaks on all seven continents, trekking to the South Pole, and running the North Pole Marathon.
The race course featured no land, only pack ice—approximately two meters thick—drifting with ocean currents. On this temporarily established track near the North Pole, 75 runners from across the globe embarked on their icy marathon journey of the marathon. Among them was Chen Min, a 56-year-old woman from Southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.
Chen's team, dubbed the "mightiest silver-haired group," included two members over the age of 73, with an average team age of 61, according to the report.
This summer, Arctic temperatures were higher than usual, thinning the sea ice—many areas measured a mere two meters thick. As runners pressed on, their strides shattered the ice into slush, turning the course into puddles 30-40 centimeters deep, with each step plunging into unstable, shifting ice and water.
A moment's carelessness could lead to stepping into ice crevasses or slipping and spraining an ankle, Shangyou News said.
Additionally, the race route required protection against potential polar bear attacks. To this end, the organizing committee stationed security personnel equipped with tranquilizer guns around the course and they monitored the ice field's movements throughout with binoculars, the report said.
Low temperatures, strong winds, psychological stress, coupled with constant route adjustments due to drifting pack ice—any misstep in this polar environment of mixed ice and water could result in failure to finish. Many seasoned runners admitted that this is the toughest marathon they have ever run.
In -2 C conditions with a wind chill of -11 C, Chen's five-member team completed the race in eight hours and 52 minutes, setting a new Guinness World Record for the fastest team finish in a North Pole Marathon.
After the race, Chen said: "In that environment, every step was an expedition through extreme conditions."
Last October, Chen completed the Seven Summits challenge—climbing the highest peak on each of the seven continents—becoming China's oldest female to climb these peaks. Prior to that, she had successfully trekked to the South Pole.
Now, with this marathon, she has completed a world-class "7+1+1" challenge: the Seven Summits, a South Pole trek, and a North Pole marathon—becoming the first Chinese woman worldwide to achieve the feat.
"Age has never been the limit; where the heart leads is what matters," she said and encouraged more people, especially middle-aged women, to step beyond life's confines and courageously pursue their own "life marathons."
"As long as you dare to take that brave first step, you can witness the world's most breath-taking landscapes," Chen said.