Junior athletes dominate the China National Grand Prix in Fuzhou – Athletics news
The absence of senior athletes provided new stars with some room to leave their footprints on the track in Fuzhou, Fujian province, at the fifth edition of the National Grand Prix meet held in China. Contestants displayed sheer competence on the track, as
they did not hesitate to embark upon their rivals under the challenging hot weather conditions.
The most prominent athlete who left the spectators stunned was 19-year-old Cheng Wen, who went on to prove his potential on the track twice. Wen, who had given a clear hint of his talent back in August last year by hitting the 400m Hurdles finishing line
under-50 seconds (49.89 seconds), made it clear at this Grand Prix that the results produced last year were not a coincidence. In fact, he went on to repeat an equally formidable performance on the second day of the event as well.
Kicking-off with his run, he stopped the clock at 49.60 seconds on Saturday, while on Sunday he lowered his time further to an impressive 49.28 seconds. The results marked by the young athlete have expectedly placed Wen at number three on the all-time Chinese
list. The top two positions are being held by Meng Yan, who had clocked 49.03 seconds and Tan Chunhua, who had covered the required distance in 49.25 seconds.
Interestingly, for turning the event into a real feast for spectators, Wen was not the only runner to leave the observers stunned. The 23-year old runner from Sichuan, Li Zhilong, also played a significant role in leaving viewers enthralled. Just like Wen,
Zhilong also clocked a time under 50 seconds, as he crossed the finishing line in 49.58 seconds. The effort was an important performance for Zhilong’s own professional career as well, since the results at Fuzhou had improved his personal best by over a second.
After this event, one positive that emerges for Chinese athletics is the development of a vast variety of formidable athletes, who are more than likely to mark their dominance in the field of athletics, for years to come.
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