Thirty-eight thousand runners from 85 countries and regions beat the heat to challenge their physical limits as the 2019 Shanghai International Marathon began at 7am on Sunday from the Bund. About 25,000 took part in the 42.2-kilometer full marathon, while 6,000 were featured in the 10km race and another 7,000 in the 5.5km run. Paul Kipchumba Lonyangata from Kenya became the first male runner to cross the finish line of the full marathon at Shanghai Stadium, clocking 2:08:11. Lonyangata was also the champion of the Shanghai event back in 2015. He was followed by Bahrain’s El Hassan El Abbassi (2:08:58) and Ethiopia’s Limenih Getachew Yizengaw (2:09:14).