While some Chinese visited their relatives or went shopping on Wednesday as they had usually done for the New Year's Day, many others however chose to take sports on the day to usher in the year 2003.
2,000 Climb Great Wall in Northern Beijing Suburb
Watched by numerous heavily-clad tourists, more than 2,000 people from across the country took part in a two kilometers climb of the famed Great Wall at Badaling, some 160km northwest of downtown Beijing.
Many just in such light dress as sports wear or even T-shirts and shorts, these participants enthusiastically managed their way up to the finish line at the No. 4 Beacon Tower.
Stretching some 6,000km from the Jiayuguan Pass in northwest China's Gansu Province to the Shanhaiguan Pass on the shores of the Bohai Bay at its eastern end, the Great Wall has always been regarded by the Chinese people as a symbol of their national spirit.
With this year's being the eighth version, the New Year's Day Great Wall Climb has been one of the most popular sports events of the residents of the Chinese capital.
Mountaineering is listed among the ten most favored sports by Chinese, according to the results of a recent survey.
Beijing's Great Wall Climb marked the beginning of the "Sports for All" program for the new year.
Building Climb in Dalian, Northeast China
Li Yongjin, the mayor of northeastern Chinese city Dalian led some 2,000 residents in the city's first ever building climbing race on Wednesday at the city's highest building -- the 57-storey, 242-meter-high World Trade Center.
The participants were divided into 11 groups, which started their efforts in an interval of 10 minutes.
Song Weiceng, 27, from the Northeast China University of Finance, took the men's title in a time of seven minutes and 14 seconds while the women's title went to Kang Dongbo.
The city's mayor reached the top of the building after a 13:26 climb. "It is not enough for Dalian to have just (the first division soccer club based in the city) Shide club. To get sports to be more actively involved by all the residents is far more important," he said.
Wang Jijian, a 48-year-old railway worker, had been known for participating in the 11 past races in a row of the Dalian international marathon. "It is really significant for us to be part of the building climb race today and the mayor's participation encouraged all of us," he said.
Round-the-city Run in Northwestern City Xining
Braving the cold under a temperature of minor 16 degrees centigrade, some 4,000 residents took part on Wednesday morning in the annual Round-the-city Race in Xining, the capital city of northwestern Qinghai Province.
2003 marks the 30th anniversary of the annual race, which has become the residents' most popular sports event in winter.
Watching other participants including kids and the elderly, a middle school student named Liu said: "I prefer doing something meaningful to just spending the New Year's Day in bed."
"To take part in the Round-the-city Run with my schoolmates would inspire me to be more energetic throughout the New Year," she added.
The participants were divided into groups of men's and women's individuals and the aged on the distances of 11,000, 9,000 and 4,000 meters. And the runners could run in speed race or jog in formations.
Annual Cross-country Run in Chengdu, Southwest China
The 34th annual cross-country run in Chengdu, capital city of southwestern Sichuan Province, on Wednesday drew an impressive field of more than 7,800.
Participants of the fitness run and speed race included those in their 60s and teenagers as young as just 13 years old. The speed race routes were 3,000 and 5,000 meters long, respectively.
Wang Degang, 64, ran for some 1,000 meters from his home in the Chenghua District to the race's starting point -- the Tianfu Square in downtown section. He took it as a warm-up for the official annual run, as a member of the city's sports association for the retired.
Wang was not quite healthy before his retirement, catching cold very often. He decided to take sports as a medication after he retired four years ago. "I hope this works," he said.
"I am here to be part of the nationwide 'Sports for All' program," said one of his friends. "Just do it, no matter what placing at the end," he added.
(Xinhua News Agency January 2, 2003)
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