Kenyan, Chinese runners triumph at Inner Mongolia's marathon races

Kenyan long-distance runner Martin Irungu Mathathi and China's Shi Liying won the men's and the women's titles respectively on Sunday at the 2019 Tour of Wuhai Lake International Marathon in Wuhai City, North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

Mathathi, 33, finished first in the men's race in two hours, 29 minutes and 43 seconds, followed by his compatriot Stephen Kimbomet in 2:34:53. China's Han Qi stood third in 2:39:04.

The Chinese runners swept the top three places in the women's marathon. Shi Liying took the title in 2:44:21, followed by Han Ruixiang in 2:47:00 and Cao Fengying in 3:05:46.

The winners, runners-up and bronze medalists were awarded 10,000 yuan ($1,485), 8,000 yuan and 6,000 yuan respectively.

Over 10,000 runners took part in the marathon, half marathon and 5km mini marathon.

Wuhai City, located in the western part of Inner Mongolia, has an area of 1,754 square kilometers and a population of 550,000. And Wuhai Lake, one of Inner Mongolia's major lakes, has an area of 118 square kilometers.

It becomes a lake after the Yellow River Haibowan Water Control Project has been succeeded in reserving water since 2013.