What was supposed to be a sporting challenge in a spectacular landscape has turned into a disaster for participants and organizers of a 100-kilometer run in China.

21 runners died when they saw a storm on Saturday afternoon during the 100-kilometer Huanghe Schilin Mountain Marathon through the stone forest on the Yellow River in Baiyin, a state-protected tourist attraction in Jingtai County in Gansu Province, which borders on Inner Mongolia to the north Freezing rain and hail were surprised.

Michael Reinsch

Correspondent for sports in Berlin.

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    There they were about thirty kilometers from the start, which they had taken in the sunshine, and had reached the mountainous part of the route that was about 2000 meters high.

    Many of the 172 participants got lost without protection in the rough terrain.

    More than a thousand helpers, including military units, spent the night searching for survivors and victims of the weather change, using radar and drones with heat sensors.

    Eight runners were brought to the hospital with severe hypothermia.

    The fatalities include Liang Jing, a well-known ultra-marathon runner from China, and the deaf Huang Guanjun, who won the marathon at China's National Paralympic Games in 2019, according to state media reports.

    "Come to the mountains to save the people"

    The South China Morning Post newspaper published interviews in which survivors said the storm was so severe that they could not stand on their feet. A runner described lying in bed at Baiyin Hospital, Gansu Province, being thrown to the ground despite being equipped with walking sticks. Another described how in the biting cold he bit his tongue and lip and slapped his face so as not to faint.

    The organizers of the run, which has been held for four years, stipulate that the participants must carry a protective blanket with them. But the storm tore them away if participants had unfolded them. Most of the runners were exposed to storms and ice in shorts and sleeveless running shirts. One participant told CNN TV that rescue workers took him to a mountain hut in the vehicle-inaccessible area; In total, around fifty runners were gathered there. A total of almost ten thousand participants had registered for two shorter races at the same location.

    Exhausted, hypothermic and disoriented runners tried to call for help with text messages. “Come to the mountains to save the people,” the German press agency quoted an SMS: “Too many are cold and got lost.” Another read: “We are in a ravine. A runner suffers from hypothermia and can no longer move. ”There was talk of the unconscious, of collapsed with foam at the mouth. The desperation became more and more evident: "It's tragic" and "Come as soon as possible!"

    For the weekend, a drop in temperature was predicted for large parts of Gansu province.

    The organizers are criticized on social media for not having prepared themselves adequately.

    One user wrote: The question was whether this was really a natural disaster or a man-made one.

    The provincial government set up a special commission to investigate the incidents.

    "As the organizers of the event, we feel deeply guilty and blame ourselves," said Zhang Xuchen, the mayor of Baiyin, on Sunday.

    The day before, he had given the starting signal for the race.

    "We express our deepest condolences to the victims and their families." The search was completed on Sunday morning, he said.

    All the missing were found, 151 participants were safe.