After having retired from athletics for nearly three decades, Wang Junxia, China’s celebrated Olympic long-distance champion, dedicated her debut marathon run to a picturesque town in the city of Wuxi, east China’s Jiangsu Province.
The 2025 Yangshan Half-Marathon, held on March 30, saw nearly 12,000 runners streaming through 1,667ha of blooming peach orchards in Yangshan, fondly known as China’s “home of honey peaches”.
“This is my first half-marathon since my retirement almost 30 years ago,” said 52-year-old Wang, visibly moved. “I was invited to lead the participants in Yangshan for just 500m, but the breathtaking scenery of blooming…



































