Left: Zhu Xianxu, deputy secretary of Ball of Yarn, a charitable running group, poses with his new medal after the New York City Marathon on Nov 1. Right: Wu Zifu, a business executive, supports the efforts of Chinese runners in the New York City Marathon.

Inspiration in the desert

Most of the runners, especially those participating in international races, are businesspeople. Li and many of his classmates from the Cheung Kong Graduate School of Business started their running journey with the Gobi Desert Challenge, during which they crossed the Gobi Desert as part of an annual competition for executive MBA students of top Chinese business schools. This year, more than 2,000 students participated in the 112-kilometer endurance challenge.

"The Gobi Desert race inspired us," Li said. "It's all about persistence. Now we have many WeChat (a popular social networking platform) groups. There are ones for marathon runners, for bikers, for mountain climbers."

Tian got hooked on running after years of mountain climbing, another trend among business professionals.

"Running is the sport with the lowest entry barrier," he said. "All you need is a pair of shoes. You have no competitors. You are competing with yourself. The philosophy is very beneficial to businessmen."

Over the years Tian has published two books and given many speeches on running. Other business participation also has supported the trend across the country among middle-class professionals, he said, adding that since he started running many of his colleagues have been influenced to varying degrees.

The number of marathons in China has been rising rapidly. Last year, 56 were held nationwide, while so far this year there have been more than 100 races. On Oct 18, 27 marathons were held simultaneously across China on Oct 18, according to Sina, a popular Web portal.

Chang Chun, another co-founder of Runnar, recalled that in 2007 and 2008, when he was in college, his university had to convince the students to participate in the Beijing Marathon by telling them they would get a free T-shirt afterward.

"This year, nearly 70,000 people registered for a race of 25,000," he said.

Running organizations also are springing up.

Sun Yingjie, one of China's best-known female long-distance runners, started a running club last year, returning to the public eye after retiring in 2009. "I teach people how to enjoy running," Sun said. "The record used to be under my feet and now it's in my phone," she joked, referring to her habit of taking "selfies" while running.

Her club has nearly 5,000 members across China; the youngest member is 8, while the oldest is 75. Each pays about $1,900 annually to take one class per week on how to run fast and safely.

Many business people have also started nonprofit organizations to promote running, such as Ball of Yarn, a charity running group started by several top executives in the finance and real estate sectors.

Zhu Xianxu, chairman of Beijing Hong Yi Thermal Energy Corp who is deputy secretary of Ball of Yarn, was passionate about the group. He said he started running to lose weight, and he has now run 26 full marathons.

At present, the club has about 50 core members who contribute about $1,600 a year to the organization. Also, each has to agree to run seven marathons annually. If anyone fails to run a race they have entered, he or she has to pay an additional $315.