China's "Nagoya campaign" in marathon has officially entered a white-hot phase! Today, the highly anticipated list of athletes advancing to the second phase of selection for the marathon at the 2026 Aichi–Nagoya Asian Games was released. This 19-person roster (10 men, 9 women), which gathers the country's top talents, not only represents the current highest competitive level of Chinese marathon running but also sends a strong industry signal— The selection mechanism is fully open, and top athletes both inside and outside the system have truly entered a golden era of "breaking the barriers" competition. Men's group: veteran and rising talents intermingle, "mass-runner stars" make history In the men's marathon 10-person list, we see the rich results of China's men's full marathon rapidly entering the "2:05–2:06 era." Undoubtedly, Feng Peiyou and last Asian Games champion He Jie are the absolute focal points of this list. Feng Peiyou, with his national record of 2:05:58 set at the Tokyo Marathon, has shown terrifying absolute pace; He Jie, as the Ningxia team's "steady anchor," has unquestionable major-race experience and tactical execution. Veteran Yang Shaohui and mid-career powerhouse Chen Tianyu still occupy the core lineup, announcing the strong foundation of the Yunnan contingent. In addition, Mao Jinhu, who recently posted an eye-catching PB of 2:07:36, and the Tibetan twins Suolang Cairen and Zhaxi Ciren, who have repeatedly broken the 2:10 barrier, will be the biggest "X factors" in the battle for race berths. Most exciting for the running community is that Hong Yue and Jia Eren have forcefully entered as "individuals"! In the past, non-registered professional mass runners often found it difficult to reach the national team threshold. This Asian Games selection truly implements the open rule of "no identity restrictions—whoever meets the standard, whoever registers, whoever competes." This signals that the prosperity of the mass marathon market has successfully supplied talent upward, and the depth of Chinese marathon talent has reached an unprecedented height. Women's group: the undisputed leader heads the field, youth forces break through strongly Yunnan star Zhang Deshun remains China's undisputed leader in the women's marathon; with a very high competitive ceiling and consistent outputs, she is undoubtedly the core force for challenging Asian Games medals. On the list, Xia Yuyu, who has rich experience both on the track and on the road and who competed at the Paris Olympics, as well as Fujian star Li Meizhen, who combines strength and popularity, are also highly anticipated. At the same time, Jiangsu's Wu Bing and Wang Jiali, Henan's Lu Ying and Xu Bingjie, and Tibet's Ciren Cuomu demonstrate that sustained, scientific investment by provinces and cities in women's long-distance running is bearing fruit. Notably, the women's group also includes a powerful athlete selected as an "individual"—Zheng Xiaoqian. Her appearance further confirms the absolute fairness of this Asian Games selection rule—if you can speak with hard-core results, the national team door opens for you. Under the current selection mechanism, none of these 19 athletes who entered the second-phase selection hold a "directly-qualified wildcard." Whether last Asian Games champions or national record holders, everyone must compete together and prove themselves through the final selection race—the Lanzhou Marathon on May 24). #AsianGamesSelection #Marathon #TrailRunningBoom #LanzhouMarathon