2026 Hood to Coast China relay set to kick off in Zhangjiakou

The 2026 Hood to Coast China relay will kick off in Zhangjiakou in June, according to officials at a news conference in Beijing on Thursday.

Now in its tenth year since first being held in Zhangjiakou in 2017, the global long-distance open running relay event has become a “must-run” event in China's running world. The "five runners, one car" team format has been staged 16 times across the country over the past decade, reaching more than 500,000 people.

This year's Zhangjiakou edition will start on the evening of June 12. A record 1,200 teams - comprising 6,000 runners and 1,200 vehicles - will depart from Zhangjiakou and cover a 142.6-kilometer course featuring 16 exchange points, culminating at the National Ski Jumping Centre, also known as "Snow Ruyi", in Chongli district of Zhangjiakou.

"The past nine years have seen nearly 40,000 runners complete the course, making the relay a shared life achievement," said Guo Lina, director of the Zhangjiakou city sports bureau. "The event has also helped boost the city's economy, driving growth in catering, accommodation, cultural tourism, and transforming visitor flow into lasting local engagement."

Li Lu, general manager of Beijing’s Starz Sports Running Culture (the relay’s organizer), described the launch event as a reunion of old friends, and took the opportunity to look back on memorable moments from the past decade.

Several upgrades have been announced for the 2026 edition.

For the first time, AI technology will be integrated into race operations, using historical data to optimize exchange zone capacity and start wave scheduling. AI-powered cameras deployed along the course will provide real-time monitoring to enhance the overall race experience.

In addition to team rankings, the 2026 event will debut individual performance tracking. Each runner's distance and time for every leg will be recorded separately, enabling personal leg results to be queried for the first time.

This year also sees the introduction of personalized bibs featuring each runner's name. Officially accredited running groups will receive exclusive bib colors.