As a former national marathon record-holder, He Jie—back in Yunnan—has transformed into a writer. He announced on his social media that his autobiographical new book, Running Saved Me Thousands and Thousands of Times, will be officially released on June 6.

In fact, Paoye had known for some time that He Jie was going to publish a book.

In late March, when the show YiQi Tie Talk invited He Jie to record an episode, he revealed that the book he wrote, Running Saved Me Thousands and Thousands of Times, was already in post-production and awaiting release.

He Jie said that as early as last year he put publishing a book on his agenda. At first he only intended to write his running experiences and reflections as an e-book to share online—after all, it’s more convenient and faster.

But because he has long been in the habit of reading physical books, he ultimately chose to go against the current and publish a printed book, meeting readers in a more traditional format in an era when everyone is glued to the internet.

In an age that prizes efficiency and speed, He Jie used his pen and his heart, taking a slow, meticulous approach to tell how he came to sport: from substitute to starter, from being underestimated to twice breaking the national record, and how he let the uproar around him pass through, ultimately running his second-best career time in Tokyo to find redemption.

Today He Jie is no longer the current national record-holder, and he also regrettably missed the top three in the Nagoya Asian Games selection race. But as he said, life is never a smooth road—so it is in competition, and even more so in life. True strength is not never failing, but choosing to step forward after failure.

If it weren’t for running, He Jie might now be herding sheep on a hillside in Hejia Village, Lingsha Township, Pingluo County, Shizuishan City, Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region. If not for running, he might already have settled down and raised a family—his kids might even be getting groceries by now.

But it was precisely running that saved him from barrenness and from confusion.

As a child, he simply thought running was fun; “I felt happy when I ran—I liked breaking into a heavy sweat,” he said.

The 2008 Beijing Olympics planted a seed in the 10-year-old He Jie’s heart—he admired Bolt’s bow-and-arrow pose. In 2013, after being selected for the Ningxia professional team, he had his shoe stepped off during a district games race, ran 10 laps barefoot and still won the silver medal.

Later, when he had nowhere else to go, he resolutely followed Coach Xiao, accepting even the role of training partner if necessary. Fate quietly planted a seed for him.

What followed is well known. From a 2:15 in Nanjing in 2020, to 2:12 in Xuzhou in 2021, to 2:11 in Berlin in 2022, and then a 2:07:30 in Wuxi in 2023, the long-dormant Chinese marathon record was rewritten.

If the story rose in a straight upward curve after that, He Jie would have been treated simply as a hero or victor, receiving only praise and adulation—formulaic and no longer moving.

But no one expected the script fate wrote. He fell to the bottom and was cursed by countless keyboard warriors; he carried the stigma, and stepping outside felt as if the air itself was full of malice. The 70-year-old Coach Xiao more than once lamented that no one truly knew what He Jie had been through then, or whether he could come back.

But He Jie did come back. In Tokyo in 2025 he ran 2:07:20, pulling himself out of the abyss. Although a new king has since emerged, He Jie—as a pioneer of Chinese marathon—still seeks the motivation and meaning to keep going.

Competitive sport is brutal; it is youth and it is competition. But those who take the path of elite sport glimpse life through it. In his interview this year with YiQi Tie Talk, He Jie was frank that without his past lows there would have been no reborn self. Only by weathering storms can you see your own cowardice—and only then know how strong you truly are.

In fact, He Jie’s love of books, or habit of reading, is not new. In several interviews Paoye conducted with him in 2023, he mentioned the kinds of books he loved then: philosophy, the Selected Works of Mao, and others—books he could lose himself in. In those pages he dialogued mentally with wise minds, quietly expanding his own cognition and horizons.

Image: provided by He Jie

何杰 has always taken an atypical path. Yet on that very road he developed his most authentic style and became uniquely himself. 何杰 says what has carried him this far has never been talent or honors. After 20 years of running, he has seen himself at his most disheveled and learned the simplest truths of life. Young people like him, in their own odysseys, inevitably go through periods of confusion, anxiety, and helplessness—uncertain where the road leads and whether persistence has any meaning.

This book might give you some answers: Running Saved Me Thousands Upon Thousands of Times.

On June 6, 何杰 will premiere his new book in his livestream, talking with everyone about 20 years of running and offering that strength to those who are confused, those who are persisting, and those who have never given up.

Leave your messages of support for He Jie in the comments section — Paoye will also give away one copy of "Running Saved Me Countless Times."