The Beijing Olympic marathon route will be tested on Sunday when the "Good Luck Beijing" International Marathon takes place.
Starting from Tian'anmen Square at 7:30 am, the 42.195 km route will go through six districts - Xuanwu, Dongcheng, Chongwen, Xicheng, Haidian and Chaoyang - ending at the National Stadium, or "Bird's Nest".
It passes a series of landmarks to show off the ancient and modern aspects of the city, including the Temple of Heaven and Zhengyangmen, Beijing Financial Street and Zhongguancun, and Peking and Tsinghua universities.
"Most of the route will be on flat roads, which will be helpful for runners to achieve good results," said Shen Chunde, competition manager of the event.
Serving as a test event for the marathon at the Beijing Games, the competition has attracted 116 runners, plus officials from six countries and regions. China's top marathon runner Zhou Chunxiu will also participate.
In order to reduce the effects of the event on traffic, there will only be traffic controls on the routes 10 minutes before the runners pass by.
Scenic spots such as Tian'anmen Square, Temple of Heaven Park and the university campuses will be closed off during the race.
