Kenyan duo Michael Selelo Saoli and Joyce Muthoni Njeru claimed victories at the Beijing Changping Classic on Sunday, the latest stop of the World Mountain Running Association (WMRA) World Cup, bringing a two-day programme of racing on the Great Wall to a close.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Across the weekend, the Changping first tested athletes in a short, intense uphill effort of 3.5km with 509m of ascent on Saturday before tackling the longer classic race over 18km \u2013 including 1200m of climbing \u2013 that demands both climbing strength and technical proficiency on descents on Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The historic Great Wall setting provided a dramatic backdrop, but it was the varied terrain and relentless gradients that ultimately shaped the outcomes of both races.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Saoli proved strongest in the men\u2019s classic race, mastering the demanding up-and-down course that combined steep climbs with technical descents. After settling into the lead group through the early stages, he made his move on the climbs as the race developed, before maintaining his advantage on the descents to secure victory in 1:25:49.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Italy\u2019s Isacco Costa was second (1:28:00) ahead of Kenya\u2019s Paul Machoka (1:28:58).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the women\u2019s race, compatriot Njeru delivered a composed and authoritative performance to take the win. The multiple global champion was always well positioned and gradually imposed herself on the race, building a decisive gap as the course unfolded.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Known for her strength across both uphill and mixed-terrain disciplines, Njeru once again demonstrated her ability to handle the varied demands of the classic format, finishing clear of her nearest challengers in 1:45:02. USA\u2019s Courtney Barnes Coppinger was second in 1:46:49 ahead of Switzerland\u2019s Maude Mathys (1:47:16).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Sunday\u2019s races followed Saturday\u2019s uphill-only contest, which offered a contrasting test of pure climbing ability on the steep gradients of the Great Wall. Costa produced a standout performance to win the men\u2019s race in 22:31, attacking the climb with intent and maintaining his advantage to the finish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Machoka was second (22:59) and Italy\u2019s Alex Baldaccini third (23:24). Saoli placed fifth (23:31).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the women\u2019s event, Mathys showed her experience and consistency on the circuit to take victory in 26:13, adding another World Cup win to her tally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Njeru was second in 26:51, finishing comfortably ahead of Coppinger (28:18).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The WMRA Mountain Running World Cup 2026 now moves on to Transvulcania in Spain in two weeks\u2019 time, where athletes will contest both an uphill race and a long distance race on the volcanic trails of La Palma.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
MEN\u2019S TOP 10<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1.\u2060 \u2060Joyce Muthoni Njeru (KEN) \u2013 1:45:02 Kenyan duo Michael Selelo Saoli and Joyce Muthoni Njeru claimed victories at the Beijing Changping Classic on Sunday,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":12259,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[44],"tags":[50,404],"class_list":["post-12258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","tag-athletics","tag-mountain-running"],"aioseo_notices":[],"featured_image_urls":{"full":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru.jpg",1920,1280,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-768x512.jpg",640,427,true],"large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-1024x683.jpg",640,427,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru.jpg",1920,1280,false],"morenews-large":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-825x575.jpg",825,575,true],"morenews-medium":["https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru-590x410.jpg",590,410,true]},"author_info":{"info":["admin"]},"category_info":"International<\/a>","tag_info":"International","comment_count":"0","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Joyce-Muthoni-Njeru.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12258"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12258\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12260,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12258\/revisions\/12260"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12259"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.infinitysport.asia\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
Women\u2019s Top 10<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2.\u2060 \u2060Courtney Barnes Coppinger (USA) \u2013 1:46:49
3.\u2060 \u2060Maude Mathys (SUI) \u2013 1:47:16
4.\u2060 \u2060Camilla Magliano (ITA) \u2013 1:48:19
5.\u2060 \u2060\u5218\u541b\u6167 (CHN) \u2013 1:48:43
6.\u2060 \u2060Camila Amaya Noe (USA) \u2013 1:49:41
7.\u2060 \u2060Eden Indigo Bliss Odea (GBR) \u2013 1:50:11
8.\u2060 \u2060Alice Gaggi (ITA) \u2013 1:53:10
9.\u2060 \u2060Sara Ann Willhoit (GBR) \u2013 1:54:43
10.\u2060 \u2060Katinka Von Elsner Wellsteed (AUS) \u2013 1:59:39<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"