"This race is equivalent to a training session, and I look forward to breaking the new record of the Xinjiang men's marathon that my brother has just set in the second half of the year." On July 10, the day the Chinese track and field team competed in the Asian Athletics Championships, Anubaik Kubend, who just won the 2023 Jinghe 60-li Goji Cultural Corridor Half Marathon Championship, told reporters yesterday.
Being able to wear the national team jersey and represent the national team in international competitions is the dream of many professional marathon runners like Anubek, which means even more to him than winning the Beijing Marathon. After winning the Beijing Marathon in November 2022, Anubaik returned to his hometown, the youth community (formerly Youth Farm) in Awulia Township, Yining County, Ili Prefecture, Xinjiang.
Anubai was born in 1996 to an ethnic Kazakh peasant family in Yining County. His home is at the foot of the Tianshan Mountains, a land known as the south of the Saiwai River. His grandfather was a herdsman, and his father, Kubend Matikasmu, once won the Ili Prefecture middle-distance running competition and later settled in Yining County.
Anubek usually lives on a youth farm, and he follows his father to his grandfather's ranch during holidays, winter and summer vacations. Growing up among the blue sky, white clouds and green grass, Anubaik drinks mountain spring water, fresh milk, eats beef and mutton, and runs freely in the grassland.
From the fifth grade, Anubaik began to run to and from school with his classmates, and the school was two or three kilometers from home, which was a big challenge for elementary school students. "I miss riding with my grandfather and dad in the mountains when I was a child, probably influenced by my dad, and I fell in love with running since elementary school." Anubek recalls his childhood with a happy face.
In junior high school, Anubek ran third place at a sports meeting in Yining County, and his enlightenment coach Bahadawur Wu Zhan Bayi took a fancy to him, and he also began professional middle and long-distance running training. Yining County champion, Yili prefecture champion, Xinjiang champion, in 2014, this 17-year-old ran into the Xinjiang track and field team.
At that time, the Xinjiang middle and long-distance running team had national champion Gu Ming, who mainly focused on 800 meters and 1500 meters, and his senior brother Hasmu Khan in the long distance. He trained with his senior brother as a squad member. In 2015, Hasmuhan ran 2 hours, 14 minutes and 26 seconds at the Chongqing Marathon and won the domestic championship. While breaking the Xinjiang men's marathon record, he also became the first and only athlete in Xinjiang to represent the Chinese track and field team in the World Athletics Championships.
"Senior Brother has always been our role model, he has a lot to learn from me, and his success has also strengthened my confidence, I believe that as long as I don't give up, I also have the opportunity to reach the height of Senior Brother." Anubek said.
In 2018, Anubak's best marathon time was 2 hours and 26 minutes, which is still far from national athletes. Only by becoming a national athlete can you become an official member of the Xinjiang sports training team. At this time, the domestic marathon fever was rising, Anubaik chose to leave the Xinjiang track and field team, and with the help of Lin Rongsheng, chairman of Xinjiang Jurong Energy Group Co., Ltd., and coach Baha Dawur, he and several brothers became professional marathon runners.
On November 6, 2022, Anubaik's dream came true, he won the Beijing Marathon with a time of 2 hours, 14 minutes and 34 seconds. The Beijing Marathon is a famous international event and the most influential marathon in China, this championship not only brought him rich bonuses, but also made him more confident that he can become a member of the national team in the future, and his result is only 8 seconds away from the Xinjiang record of his brother Hasmu Khan.
"His championship is very important, inspiring many Xinjiang children like him who are struggling to adhere to the marathon dream, and he has become an idol and role model for many middle and long-distance runners in Yining County, Yili Prefecture and even the whole of Xinjiang." Bahadago said proudly.
The first to be inspired was his former teammate, Bahutar Wurazi Aili from Ili Gongliu County, who finished second in the Hangzhou Marathon on November 20, 2022 with a time of 2 hours, 17 minutes and 26 seconds.
At the Wuxi Marathon in March this year, Chinese runner He Jie set a new 15-year-old national record for men's marathon with a time of 2 hours, 7 minutes and 30 seconds. His brother, Turuaboul Torehan, also from Yining County, ran 2 hours, 12 minutes and 46 seconds in this event, improving the Xinjiang men's marathon record by 40 seconds.
This Jinghe race is also the fourth frontier marathon that Anubai won this year. He went home to adjust and will participate in the Urumqi City Marathon on July 16.
For professional marathoners, the main marathons in a year are 2-4 races, and the other races are trained by race. The Hengshui Marathon, Shanghai Marathon and Guangzhou Marathon in the second half of the year are the main goals of Anubak.
"In these three events, the first goal is to reach the international level (within 2 hours and 13 minutes), the second goal is to break the Xinjiang record (2 hours, 12 minutes and 46 seconds), and in addition, try to win the championship." Anubak's words are full of firmness, "I hope to persevere until I am 35 years old, and before I retire, I can represent the Chinese team in world competitions such as the Asian Games, World Championships, and Olympic Games." ”
Editor丨 Tong Tong