Face masks and sponges help Beijing marathoners fight off smog

The marathon’s organising committee said late Saturday that postponing the event would be difficult because of all the planning that had gone into it, and asked competitors to understand, the Beijing News said.

Marathon runners, some wearing masks to protect themselves from Beijing's smog, jog past Tiananmen Gate shrouded in haze during the 2014 Beijing International Marathon on Sunday, October 19, 2014. Andy Wong/AP PhotoShow less

BEIJING // Thousands of runners battled thick smog at the Beijing Marathon on Sunday as air pollution soared to 16 times the maximum recommended level.

Organisers rejected calls to postpone the race despite the soupy white haze, but said they had laid on extra medical staff to treat injuries among the more than 25,000 registered runners.

The level of small pollutant particles known as PM2.5, which can embed themselves deep in the lungs, reached more than 400 micrograms per cubic metre in parts of Beijing as the racers lined up.

The World Health Organisation’s recommended daily maximum average exposure is 25. The US embassy in Beijing described the air on Sunday as “hazardous”.

“Actually, on a normal day, nobody would run in such conditions,” said participant Liu Zhenyu. “But the event is happening today, so what can we do?”

About 30,000 people were expected to take part in the marathon and the half-marathon.

“When I looked at the state of the mask after 10 kilometres, I decided enough was enough,” said British runner Chas Pope, 39, after dropping out of the race.

“It felt pretty ridiculous given we’re meant to be running for health and fitness.”

The organising committee made 140,000 sponges available at supply stations along the route so runners could "clean their skin that is exposed to the air", the Beijing News reported.

Many top long-distance athletes stayed away from the race, which was won by Ethiopia’s Girmay Birhanu Gebru in two hours, 10 minutes and 42 seconds. His compatriot Fatuma Sado Dergo was the fastest woman with a time of 2.30.03.

At the finish line, athletes tried not to let worries about air quality take the shine off their pride in their performance.

“I’m used to the pollution,” said Beijing runner Liu Fan, who ran 32 kilometres of the 42-kilometre (26-mile) race. His wife handed him a bunch of flowers, describing conditions as “terrible”.

The Chinese actor Yuan Hong pulled out of the race, writing on his microblog account: “The air quality is too poor!”

* Agence France-Presse with additional reporting by Associated Press