The torch relay for the 9th Asian Winter Games highlighted the charm of Harbin, the provincial capital of Heilongjiang in the northeast and the host city of the upcoming Games.
The one-day offline relay started at 09:00 local time on Monday, which covered an 11-kilometer route.
The relay began at the century-old Chinese Baroque-style Cultural and Historic Block, passed several of the city’s landmarks, including the Central Street and Harbin Flood Control Memorial Tower, and concluded at the Snowman Wharf, a snow entertainment park in Daoli District. The route is designed to pass some iconic attractions of Harbin.
A total of 120 torchbearers participated in the torch relay, ranging in age from 16 to 83. China's Olympic champion and pair skater Shen Xue was the first to light the torch and ran with it.
The oldest torchbearer was Heilongjiang-born athlete Luo Zhihuan, China's first world champion in winter sports.
Among other notable torchbearers were Wang Meng, China's four-time Olympic gold medalist in short track speed skating, and Yu Zaiqing, vice president of the Chinese Olympic Committee and a member of the International Olympic Committee (IOC).
The Olympic flame will be lit at the main torch tower during the opening ceremony of the 9th Asian Winter Games on Friday evening, and will continue to burn until the closing of the Games on Feb 14.
Over 1,270 athletes from 34 countries and regions across Asia will participate in the 9th Asian Winter Games, making this edition the largest in terms of participating delegations and athletes.
Torch relay for Asian Winter Games unfolds in Harbin
Torch relay for Asian Winter Games unfolds in Harbin
As Kenyan marathon runner Sabastian Sawe shattered the two-hour barrier at the 2026 London Marathon on Sunday, Barnaba Korir, Youth Development Director at Athletics Kenya, hailed his historic achievement as a landmark moment for the nation and resounding proof that no human is limited.
Taking up the ultimate marathon challenge that had long eluded even the legendary runner Eliud Kipchoge, who famously finished the world's first sub-two-hour marathon distance under specially designed, non-race conditions with support, Sawe became the first person to break the two-hour mark in a sanctioned marathon, clocking 1:59:30 at this year's London Marathon.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Korir, a former athlete now devoted to sports development in Kenya, called the day "a historic moment" for his country.
"This is really a historic moment for Athletics Kenya. Sebastian Sawe breaking the two-hour barrier for the first time on a scale that we were looking for with Kipchoge. We are very excited about this performance and Athletics Kenya and Kenya as a whole is proud of what he has done today in London," he said.
Beyond the race itself, Sawe's feat has once again demonstrated to the world that the human spirit yields to no limits, he added.
"This was a big surprise we did not expect. I watched the race and at first I thought maybe they were not going to make it, but eventually he did. As Eliud Kipchoge said before, that no human is limited. Yes, it has been done, and we believe that actually when you give all the support that is necessary, the work that they have done, yes, no human is limited, and Kenya has shown that it can be done," he said.
Sawe's sub-2 hour marathon record proves no human is limited: Kenyan official
