More than 10,000 runners participate in the Yantai Marathon on Oct 15. [photo/Shm news]

More than 10,000 runners participated in the Yantai Marathon on Oct 15, enjoying views of the sea along the track and local specialty art and food at the finish line.

The event, which was held for the first time in six years in Yantai, a coastal city in East China's Shandong province, was also participated in by celebrities such as Liu Jianhong, a famous soccer commentator, and Li Zicheng, the first Asian Marathon Grand Slam champion, Bian Tongda, a Yantai native and World Cup champion, and Wu Min, a former member of the national team and long-distance runner.

Li won the men's full marathon championship at the event, which featured a track along the sea.

Wang Zixuan, a runner from Xi'an, Shaanxi, said: "I have participated in five official marathons, but this is the first time in my life I've done a marathon on the coast. Being able to compete with big names and complete my own race while admiring the sea is very rewarding."

The organizing committee also held the Yellow River Fair, which promotes the trade of local handmade products and agricultural specialties, during the marathon. Cultural handicrafts such as Yantai paper-cutting, gourd carving, Yantai velvet embroidery, and local specialty fruits such as Yantai apples and Laiyang pears, and a large collection of specialty food, were presented along the track and near the finish line.

Li Jie, a runner from Yantai, completed his first half-marathon and experienced his first Yellow River Fair.

"Even us locals in Yantai find the combination of the marathon and the fair new and unique," Li said. "It's really great having good food from Yantai to replenish our physical strength after completing the long run."