Two runners collapsed and died while participating in the Beijing International Marathon on Sunday, news reports said on Monday.
Xinhua news agency reported a 20-year-old student and a retiree were both pronounced dead after being transported to separate hospitals. The student collapsed 17km into the race.
Eleven other runners were treated in hospital after falling ill during the marathon. Among them was an unidentified woman who was in serious condition in the Haidian hospital after collapsing midway through the race, the People’s Daily newspaper reported.
Amateur participants complained that no drinking water was available along the course after 25km, the newspaper said.
The organisers of the event said about 25 000 people took part in Sunday’s race, which was won by James Moiben of Kenya, with Sun Yingjie of China winning the women’s division. – Sapa-DPA