52-year-old Chinese businessman expects to finish 100 marathons before 60

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Deng Chaoming, 52, finished his 62nd marathon in April in Wuhan City, central China's Hubei Province. "I have set foot in 40 cities, from Harbin in the north, Hainan in the south, Shanghai in the east and Dunhuang in the west in the past four years," he said.

Born in 1966, Deng attempted his first marathon in Hengshui, north China's Hebei Province, reaching the finish line at five hours and 26 minutes, half an hour before the close-out. Two months later, he attended another marathon in Hefei, east China's Anhui Province, and reduced his time by over half an hour to four hours and 49 minutes.

Deng learned that the key to running a marathon is to find and maintain the speed best for himself. Now he keeps his pace at about one kilometer every six minutes and 10 seconds and finishes a marathon at about four hours and 20 minutes. "Of course I could run faster, but now my goal is to run longer."

Marathons are growing increasingly popular in China. /VCG Photo

Deng said he could finish about 20 marathons a year, has run two marathons in two days and even managed to finish two in one day. "Once, I finished one in the morning in Harbin and then went to Qingdao for another starting at 11 p.m." He stated that he will make sure that he is in optimal condition to run so that every marathon can be fun and safe.

Deng is more than willing to share his fun running with others. Thanks to his influence, his wife attended a half marathon and met him at the goal line after Deng finished a full one. He also kept posting every marathon he attends and marking how many he has already finished. Deng even started organizing and promoting marathons to draw more people.

Deng promised himself that he would finish 100 marathons before turning 60. "If I keep the pace of finishing 20 a year, I can realize my goal long before I'm 60. Maybe I can even try to run for 1,000 marathons."