Marathons offer healthy business opportunities

Those who are tech-savvy are usually equipped with watches that can update your speed and distance, heart rate and calories, with high-end devices being able to upload your statistics to an online training log where you can analyze your performance after a race. Gamin, Sunnto and Magellan are the favorite brands.

For trail runners, those who prefer to run in the mountains rather than on city streets, a pair of walking sticks, a hydration pack, a nutrition belt, a reflective race vest and a head lamp are a must and will always come in handy to boost performance, with brands such as Black Diamond, Ultimate Direction, Nathan, Salomon and Petzl, to name but a few, being the favorites.

Also on the list are knee and ankle supports, sunglasses, headgear, running hats, energy bars and gels, and so on. It actually spreads throughout an entire running industry chain.

Yet almost all these products, especially those high-end brands that are eagerly sought after by an increasing number of Chinese long-distance runners, are from overseas.

Unlike the general sports sector where you could feel the rising might of Chinese brands such as Li-Ning, Anta, 361, Peak, which are eating into the market share of world sportswear giants like Nike and Adidas, in the endurance sports sector, Chinese brands' presence is almost invisible. Winning even a tiny market share can mean immense business benefits for domestic sports firms.

But so far it seems that few if any Chinese brands have looked into this largely ignored sector－a gold mine yet to be explored.