The second stop of the China Fitness Mountain Climbing Race was launched on Sept 16 in Xuankong Temple on Hengshan Mountain, Datong city.

Hengshan Mountain (one of the Five Great Mountains in China) was the second stop after the contest was held on Huashan Mountain in Shaanxi province, another of the Five Great Mountains. Thousands of mountain climbers gathered at the event. The Beijing team even organized a motorcade including tens of cars to drive from Beijing to Hengshan.

Athletes from Hengshan won the top prize in the fitness group division at the Huashan Mountain station. As a famous Taoist mountain, Hengshan also organized a team of Taoist priests to take part in the race.

Yan Jinan, head of the Mountaineering Management Centre of General Administration of Sport of China, and Song Jupu, director of the Photograph Committee of the China Landscape and Historic Sites Association (CLHSA), awarded Hengshan as the Mountaineering Base of the Chinese Mountaineering Association (CMA) and gave the mountain the bronze prize for Chinese Famous Mountains for Fitness.

Hengshan holds national mountain-climbing race

Hengshan holds national mountain-climbing race

The sponsors of the China Fitness Mountain Climbing Race were CMA and CLHSA. The races were divided into three categories, including a professional group, family group and fitness group. In addition, the organization committee created the Climber Fund, which would support excellent contestants.

After fierce competition, Wang Zhicheng from Chongqing won first place in the men's professional group and Gan Xue of Beijing won the women`s professional group championship. Bai Xianlin and Liu Xiaoliang won first place in the family group, and Meng Zhijun from Shanxi won the top prize in the fitness group.

By Tana