# Breaking News: 21 Runners Die In Extreme Weather In China Mountaineous Ultra-Marathon Race **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 23, 2021, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748 "2021-05-23T17:46:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/1 "2021-05-23T17:46:44Z")
> **[21 Runners Die In Extreme Weather In China Cross-Country Race](https://www.npr.org/2021/05/23/999546242/21-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-cross-country-race)** > > The competitors in a high-altitude race were racing on an extremely narrow mountain path when hail, freezing rain and gale-force winds hit, catching them off guard. For more extensive discussion see this Reddit thread: > **[r/running - 21 deaths in Chinese 100km ultra. Out of 170 racers.](https://www.reddit.com/r/running/comments/nj0ci3/21_deaths_in_chinese_100km_ultra_out_of_170_racers/)** > > 1,763 votes and 214 comments so far on Reddit Can anyone think of any other athletic event that has caused so many deaths? ---
**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/2 "2021-05-23T18:16:19Z")
Does climbing Everest count, or do you mean on the same date? ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/3 "2021-05-23T18:28:09Z")
> **[Hillsborough disaster | Details, Deaths, 1989, Facts, & Aftermath](https://www.britannica.com/event/Hillsborough-disaster)** > > Recent News: Two organizations representing police in Britain have apologized to the families of those killed in the Hillsborough disaster. "Police failures were the main cause of the tragedy and have continued to blight the lives of family members... ---
**Author:** ![Lamoral](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lamoral/32/16078_2.png) [@Lamoral](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamoral)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/4 "2021-05-23T18:33:55Z")
One driver and 83 spectators were killed in a crash at the 24 Hours of Le Mans race in 1955. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955\_Le\_Mans\_disaster](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1955_Le_Mans_disaster) ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/5 "2021-05-23T18:42:21Z")
Let’s limit it to the same date and athletic participants, not spectators. For example the 1979 Fastnet yachting race with 15 participants dead (which is less than the 21 dead from this race): > **[1979 Fastnet race](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1979_Fastnet_race)** > > Pages for logged out editors learn more > > > > Coordinates: .mw-parser-output .geo-default,.mw-parser-output .geo-dms,.mw-parser-output .geo-dec{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .geo-nondefault,.mw-parser-output .geo-multi-punct{display:none}.mw-parser-output .longitude,.mw-parser-output .latitude{white-space:nowrap}50°33′00″N 6°58′16″W / 50.550°N 6.971°W / 50.550; -6.971 > The 1979 Fastnet Race was the 28th Royal Ocean Racing Club's Fastnet Race, a yachting race held generally every two y... ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/6 "2021-05-23T18:49:11Z")
> [@PastTense](#): > > Let’s limit it to the same date and athletic participants, not spectators. - The gladiatorial games in Ancient Rome? ---
**Author:** ![Dallas\_Jones](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dallas_jones/32/3277_2.png) [@Dallas\_Jones](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dallas_Jones)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/7 "2021-05-23T19:25:54Z")
I’ll bet that they were in the best shape of their lives. ---
**Author:** ![Brayne\_Ded](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e9bcb4/32.png) [@Brayne\_Ded](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Brayne_Ded)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/8 "2021-05-23T19:48:08Z")
Not of this type, but I heard of a race across moorland in England or Wales, AFAIK in the Seventies, in which the contestants were lightly dressed and were caught out by a sudden change in the weather. Duh. The British hills are notorious for a sudden change in the weather, been there, done that, got damn cold. In that case the organizers took rapid action and I believe there were no deaths, but it was a very close thing. Other athletic events with multiple deaths? I can’t think of any. It seems to me that the Chinese organizers and the actual runners were ill prepared. The runners should have carried warm clothing, and the organizers should have set up stations along the way to intervene quickly if things got pear-shaped. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [May 23, 2021, 11:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/9 "2021-05-23T23:12:25Z")
> [@Brayne\_Ded](#): > > It seems to me that the Chinese organizers and the actual runners were ill prepared. We had an ultra-marathon in Australia that put the participants through a bush fire. I can’t remember if anyone was actually killed, but someone was badly burned. The commentary was that the organizers should have called off / interrupted the race. Speaking of which, today the Giro d’Italia was interrupted for 15 minutes after a crash. Like a car race, they stopped racing while the organizers cleared the road and took care of the injured. ---
**Author:** ![Gorsnak](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gorsnak/32/7587_2.png) [@Gorsnak](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorsnak)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 4:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/10 "2021-05-24T04:15:16Z")
It wasn’t because of the crash itself. Crashes don’t generally stop the racing. But in this case all the ambulances attending the race were tied up so that if there’d been another incident there wouldn’t have been medical assistance available, so the race was neutralized till that was resolved. Bicycle road racing is pretty dangerous, what with large tightly packed groups of racers traveling sometimes upwards of 60km/h wearing nothing but lycra and lots of chances to wipe out. ---
**Author:** ![Spiderman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spiderman/32/230_2.png) [@Spiderman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spiderman)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/breaking-news-21-runners-die-in-extreme-weather-in-china-mountaineous-ultra-marathon-race/942748/11 "2021-05-24T15:28:26Z")
I haven’t really seen anything related to the root cause of this tragedy - why they weren’t prepared for the weather. I have over ½ dozen weather related websites/apps that I use; some are for general weather, some are aviation specific (ie. winds aloft), some are photography specific (ie. how spectacular will the sunrise/set be to shoot). I’ve seen differences in forecasts but they’re usually not polar opposites; just a couple of degrees different in terms of temp or precipitation percentage or cloud cover, etc . I also know that they’re coming from the same source (US Govt/NOAA satellites & weather balloons) but the raw data can be interpreted differently based upon the model. Is there a lack of weather info available in China? Do we not have worldwide weather satellite coverage? I’ve also done ultramarathons before, including one in a foreign country where I threw in the towel because I was underdressed. I don’t care what the race promoter states, I’m going to take/wear what is necessary for me to be comfortable in my race. (ie. when you’re starting a new multi-hour lap right before sunset, take that extra layer with you; you’ll want it by the end of that lap.) When I packed, the 10-day forecast was ‘normal’ & in line with yearly averages (in May, the average low is **x** & the average high is **y** ) & my personal experience there. However, by the time the race happened, the forecast had changed & that one night was about 15° lower than normal. I did pack (unneeded) rain gear but never thought to pack cold winter gear. A mesh running baseball hat doesn’t do a lot to keep your head warm when it’s below freezing. Lesson learned! My next travel race I’ll be packing things I hope to never pull out of my suitcase. The one article linked in the OP has this - " _A woman who worked for the race organizer, Gansu Shengjing Sports Culture Development Co., said there were no predictions of extreme weather for the day of the race, according to Beijing News, a paper owned by the Beijing city government._ _However, Baiyin city’s local branch of the National Early Warning Information Center had warned for the past three days of hail and strong winds._ _The race also followed a relatively established course, having been held four times, according to an account posted online by a participant in the race who quit and managed to make his way to safety._ _But the weather caught them off guard, and on the morning of the race Saturday, he already sensed things were not normal. The runners were not dressed for winter-like conditions, many wearing short-sleeved tops._" but it makes it sound that they were clueless that this storm might occur. Is this a ‘China’ thing in that weather info isn’t as readily available there as it is here?