Personalized Marathon Training Plan Guide
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most influential marathons ranking when will the declining nanjing marathon rebound
*Please note, this is an article with almost no pictures.
Recently, People's Daily Onlinereleased the 'Top 100 Most Influential Marathons of 2018' list (hereinafter referred to as the 'list').The list was jointly published for the fourth consecutive year by People's Sports and the People's Daily Online Public Opinion Data Center. This year's list criteria focused on 'event professionalism,' 'media recognition,' and 'public approval,' involving over 50 specific evaluation indicators. The events included in the list are A and B category events certified by the Chinese Athletics Association and those that made it to the 'Top 100 Most Influential Marathons of 2017,' totaling over 300 events.
Event professionalism is mainly calculated based on indicators such as event level, participation, athlete performance, and prize settings, assessing the professionalism of each event. Media recognition is mainly calculated based on the exposure and search volume of each event's name in online media, as well as the dissemination of WeChat, Weibo, live broadcasts, and short videos, assessing the media promotion of each event. Public approval is mainly calculated based on the positive and negative emotional orientation of major event information in online media and among internet users, as well as public participation in the events, evaluating the recognition of marathons by the media and netizens.
What I am most concerned about is my hometown, Nanjing Marathon, and its ranking. Starting from the top, as the ranking kept dropping, my mood also kept sinking. Finally, at the 33rd position, I found the Nanjing Marathon that I had been longing for.
Generally speaking, the influence of a marathon is proportional to the influence of the city. Cities with strong economic power, abundant tourism resources, municipalities, provincial capitals, and economically strong cities usually host quite good marathons. After all, with strong overall city strength, the level of event organization naturally won't be low. Moreover, it serves as a city's business card, and leaders at all levels pay great attention to it, not allowing it to be poorly organized.
Of course, this is generally speaking. There is also another situation, which is the level of the event execution company. Having the care of provincial and municipal leaders is not enough; the level of the specific organizers directly affects the success or failure of an event.
A positive example is the 10th place Yangzhou Half Marathon and the 11th place Wuxi Marathon.
Although the city of Yangzhou was once glorious in history, its current fame has been declining. However, this second-tier city in Jiangsu Province has organized one of the most professional half marathons in the country. Focusing on professionalism is one of the keys to the success of the Yangzhou Half Marathon. Coupled with strong support from the government and the public, it is hard not to succeed.
As for the Wuxi Marathon, it goes without saying. Codoon has made continuous efforts over the years, upgrading and improving details bit by bit, constantly enhancing the race experience for runners. They have turned the marathon in this second-tier city into a platinum event with over 100,000 registrants. It is a well-regarded event among runners, more effective than any certification from the Chinese Athletics Association or the International Association of Athletics Federations.
Now let's talk about today's main topic, a negative example, the Nanjing Marathon.
Nanjing's overall strength, regardless of which dimension of the ranking, is almost never below the top ten in the country. In various aspects, it has almost no shortcomings: long history, splendid culture, abundant resources, advanced science and education, tourist attractions, and convenient transportation. Such an excellent city deserves an epic marathon.
At present, the Nanjing Marathon can only be considered an ordinary marathon. Compared to the achievements of this city, the Nanjing Marathon is far from matching the name 'Nanjing.'
The best-organized marathon so far was the 2018 Nanjing Marathon. Compared to previous editions, it finally did not receive much negative feedback. It can be said to be a mediocre race, aiming not for merit but for no mistakes. As long as it can be held, it is considered good enough. As for how well it was organized, there is no specific assessment anyway.
However, the national marathon ranking provides a specific assessment. 33rd place. Looking at the marathons ranked ahead, I cannot accept that it is ranked so low.
Event professionalism,63.64points.I personally think it is overrated. After all, there was an incident where the leading group ran the wrong way and collectively withdrew, causing the men's champion time in 2016 to be over 2:30. In 2017, the men's champion was 2:20, and the women's champion was 3:13. This situation improved somewhat in 2018. However, it was still laughable, with the men's champion being a pacer, finishing in 2:14. The women's champion finished in 2:30. This result is acceptable. However, many jokes were made during the event, such as having 150 pacers for the full marathon, frequent errors in English translations, incorrect directions on signboards, etc. How can this level of professionalism be considered high? However, there were improvements in many aspects in 2018, thank goodness.
Media recognition,57.63points.I personally think it benefited from the name 'Nanjing.' If it weren't for this economically strong city, how much media exposure could such an ordinary marathon have? There were no promotional points for the event, nor any supporting interactive activities. It was held quietly, like completing a task. It gave the impression that the fewer people knew about it, the better. Compared to the Hangzhou Marathon held on the same day, it almost had no presence. Various data were completely defeated, and the number of registrants was just a bit more than a fraction. Hangzhou had over 100,000 registrants, while how many did Nanjing have? Only the event company knows. According to the race certificate, the planned number of full marathon participants was 10,000, but only about 6,700 finished.The planned number of full marathon participants was 10,000, but only about 6,700 finished.
Public approval,40.45points.In the entire list, it rankssecond to last..This is only among the top 100 events. If it were among the top 300, I don't think it would be much better than other events. This value is the key data directly affecting the low ranking. If this data were increased by a dozen points, the ranking could go up quite a bit. But there are no 'ifs.' If 'ifs' were useful, there wouldn't be so many comparisons. What I value more is this score, as it truly reflects public opinion. If the public does not approve, there must be a reason. I believe this list is relatively objective and fair, with all data having certain sources and reasons.
The course conditions of the Nanjing Marathon are among the most beautiful, culturally rich, and sincere in the country.It passes through the best and busiest parts of Nanjing. From this perspective, the government's determination and support for the event are enormous. The government has shown sincerity, but how did the specific executors repay it?
They gave a score that I consider completely failing. 54.28 points, ranking 33rd in the class. It's like a student who scores above 95 in all other subjects and ranks in the top 5 in the class, but fails in physical education, ranking 33rd. It's not that their physical fitness is poor, running slower or jumping lower than others, but that the sports committee member leading the team is not competent, either leading them to the wrong exam venue or remembering the wrong exam time. Moreover, their attitude is not serious, not taking this work seriously. Since it's not a major subject, it's not important. Originally, they could have done well, but with such a mess, everyone just gives up.
This sports committee member is the Nanjing Marathon's operating company,Wenyuan Sports.Doesn't it sound like it has no presence? Yes, I had to remember it several times before I could recall it.
You can't blame everyone. After all, in these few years, the company has only operated the Nanjing Marathon in road running events. The rest are basketball, volleyball, and other such events. Compared to these indoor events, organizing an open-road marathon is the most difficult and requires the most professional organization and coordination. And organizing only one marathon a year, it is clear that there is almost no reserve of professional talent. The company cannot afford to maintain a team just for this one event a year. Looking at all the events on the list, are there any other event companies like this? Except for those executed by local sports bureaus, almost none.
Only professionals can do professional work.Only professionals can do professional work better. The result of being unprofessional is using the experience of organizing indoor events to organize an open event involving the public, which naturally cannot be done well. One serves dozens of professional athletes, while the other serves tens of thousands of runners. These are two different event organization approaches and styles.
How to solve the problem of the Nanjing Marathon'sweakness?
Wenyuan Sports' contract is 3+2, and 2019 is their last year. We hope their company can truly take road running seriously, operate several more marathons, build a professional team, and organize each event seriously. However, given how they have organized the Nanjing Marathon, can we expect them to organize other events well? The possibility is very low.Very low.Please, don't ruin other cities and events. So, even I can't convince myself of this idea.
How can the Nanjing Marathonbecome strong?
There is only one way, which is to replace the operator. Let the unprofessional ones step aside and bring in a truly professional company to execute it, so as not to waste the government's efforts and the runners' passion. There are many companies capable of organizing a good Nanjing Marathon. Excluding factors like relationships and economics, purely from the perspective of event organization, the following three companies can be considered.Note: The three companies are not ranked in any particular order.
First, Wuxi Codoon Events.One of the best event companies in the country, closest to Nanjing. With events like the Wuxi Marathon, TNF100 series, and the Xi'an Marathon in collaboration with Qujiang Events, this company excels in both strength and appearance, balancing responsibility and professionalism. Organizing a good Nanjing Marathon would only take one edition.
Second, Guangzhou Zhongti Events.Zhongti Events, deeply rooted in Guangdong and Guangxi, is the most down-to-earth marathon operating company. Whether you run well or not, they ensure you run comfortably. They not only organize runs but also give away prizes. They have a unique approach to market development and are very good at attracting sponsors. They are the ones who give away cars for marathons. However, their events are mainly concentrated in Guangdong and Guangxi. When will they bring such good benefits to the whole country? Let's wait and see.
Third, any other event company.No matter what, being able to operate a marathon in Nanjing, a national central city, is a significant achievement for any event company. They will definitely go all out to organize this event well. I believe the current Nanjing Marathon is already the bottom line that everyone sees. As for the upper limit, no one knows.
It's frustrating.I believe no company would organize it worse than it is now. Nanjing, a city full of glory and dreams, has too many stories and highlights to develop, to let runners from all over the world experience this unique course.
No matter what, as long as I can breathe, I will definitely contribute all I can to the Nanjing Marathon.
Because
I love my hometown, and I love everyone.
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