On May 22, during a violent storm of rain, hail, and freezing temperatures. The Chinese government responded on Wednesday on ultra races in the country, as well as 鈥渘ewly popular sport activities that involve high risk,鈥 like听wingsuit flying. As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)听has only just begun its investigation, it鈥檚 unclear which outdoor sports the latter category will include, but the details will be important. Depending on the length and range of the ban, the decision could stifle听the growth of outdoor adventure sports in China, which have exploded over the past decade, especially among the growing Chinese middle class. Ultrarunners across the globe are worried about the future of the sport in the country.听鈥淭here is something truly special about moving through the world under your own power,鈥 says ultrarunner Mike Wardian, who has competed in several events in China.听鈥淚 am so sad for the athletes and their families and the race organizers who won鈥檛 be able to compete in this way.鈥
I鈥檝e been covering 听for years, and for those familiar with the Chinese ultrarunning scene, the tragedy wasn鈥檛 all that shocking.听There is an enormous range of quality, safety standards, and planning at Chinese races, and many outdoor athletes there are still learning to manage weather risk in the mountains more cautiously. The government response hasn鈥檛 been surprising, either: the CCP听tends to respond to civic tragedies with blunt, outright bans rather than nuanced reform, and that鈥檚 exactly what they鈥檝e done this week.
The Chinese central government in Beijing is often unaware of unregulated booms occurring in distant provinces鈥攊n this case, running鈥攗ntil something bad happens. Then the Party cracks down.听Political scientists use the wonky term 鈥溾澨齮o describe this dynamic of in China, but I鈥檝e always thought an ancient Chinese proverb does the job better: 鈥淗eaven is high, and the emperor is far away.鈥 Though the Chinese running boom had been expanding for decades across distant mountains with the enthusiastic support of local officials, the central government wasn鈥檛 always aware of the growth or its potential dangers. Until now.
But what about China鈥檚 runners, who number in the tens of millions? Will races and other outdoor sports ever come back for them? Here, the CCP faces a more complicated problem. Since China 听but not its political system听in the 1970s, the CCP has maintained an informal agreement with its citizens:听in exchange for continued one-party authoritarian rule, Chinese people have been allowed greater immediate personal freedoms in areas of civic life like recreation, which have been widely explored. 鈥淪ports give you self-confidence. They make you healthier. They make you happier,鈥 53-year-old Chinese runner听Yu Yan听told me a few years ago after finishing an ultra.
Banning something like a popular outdoor sport, however, crosses this line of personal freedom, which makes this response from the CCP so unnerving. Such violations have been under President听Xi Jinping. For听ultrarunners and organizers in China,听seeing a similar intrusion into a hobby like running is especially troubling. Most in the Chinese ultra scene听would agree that outdoor adventure sports need to be made safer in China, but permanently banning the sport鈥攚hich has provided a space for individualism, adventure, and freedom in people鈥檚 daily lives鈥攚ould be a shame. 鈥淩unning is a way of spreading enthusiasm, solidarity, and ability among people,鈥 said one runner听who worried about the government鈥檚 coming response to the tragedy. 鈥淚 think a better way to deal with it is for organizers to improve infrastructure and various measures of safety.鈥
A ban would also endanger the income that commercial racing has provided to many Chinese athletes who have fled the harsh Soviet . 鈥淚 have a friend who鈥檚 got a wife, two small kids, and parents. He left the sports system to make money racing,鈥 Qi Min, a top Chinese runner, once told me. If commercial racing disappears, runners trained in听sports academies with little other education听won鈥檛 have the same avenues to make a living. Given these realities and the popularity of running in the country,听CCP leaders will likely feel public pressure to allow ultra events again, and听after a while, local officials may lobby to bring back races for all the fanfare they bring听to their cities.
It would be a mistake, however, to frame all questions surrounding the oversight of adventure sports as being unique to China. Regulation of adventure sports has always been suspect to many outdoor athletes, and even infrastructure that makes races safer can be viewed with skepticism. 鈥淲ith this sport becoming more mainstream, with more people than ever getting involved, the risks are greater and we are more likely to see adverse outcomes,鈥 Nathan Montague, a British ultrarunner who鈥檚 raced in China, told me. 鈥淪o both race directors and organizers have a greater degree of responsibility to negate these risks and protect these individuals from themselves. But ultimately, the duty of responsibility needs to be taken by the athlete.鈥
When I reported on the top-flight medical team that provided support to the Ultra Gobi, another premier event in China, some athletes viewed the extra support as a luxury, even a bit overblown. Ultras can鈥檛 ever fully guarantee safety, some pointed out, and athletes can鈥檛 ever be entirely free without being allowed to take risks. 鈥淚 really love that in the U.S. most races don鈥檛 have requirements,鈥 Wardian says. 鈥淭he race might suggest stuff, but it鈥檚 up to you. It鈥檚 a free country, and it鈥檚 your choice.鈥 He added that diversity in race regulation is probably a good thing. 鈥淓urope is more strict with mandatory kits and certifications. I like both, it鈥檚 just different.鈥
In any case, an outright ban will likely be self-defeating. In the absence of formal races, Chinese athletes will keep venturing into the mountains,听but with even less oversight. One can only hope that the CCP will acknowledge this reality and devise more thoughtful reforms than bans. 鈥淚t is impossible to remove risk in the mountains,鈥 Wardian says. 鈥淭hey don鈥檛 ban surfing if someone听drowns.鈥