In 2021, while still a high school senior, Jin Yanwei began distance running after a teacher suggested it as a way to cope with academic stress. What began as an outlet soon became serious: he trained around 15 kilometres a day and used some of his race winnings to cover living expenses and reduce the financial burden on his parents. After entering Xi’an Traffic Engineering Institute in 2024, Jin competed in more than 70 long-distance events and logged 7,835 kilometres over two years.
At his graduation in June 2026, Jin borrowed a flagpole from a classmate, hung more than 70 medals from it and carried it across the stage. Many were finisher medals, but he also earned over 40 placement awards and won major races—including a record-breaking university 10,000-metre championship. Jin said he wasn’t showing off the medals; he was showing the years of hard work behind them.
My sources:
https://app.xinhuanet.com/news/article.html?articleId=202606266f072bd280b144bb93a4d52bfcdca518
https://view.inews.qq.com/a/20260625A03ETF00
https://finance.sina.com.cn/jjxw/2026-06-25/doc-inierays0954326.shtml
https://www.scmp.com/news/people-culture/trending-china/article/3358968/chinese-student-displays-70-marathon-medals-graduation-after-running-fund-education
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