Back-to-back champion! Former female nurse Zhang Shuihua wins the title at the Liuzhou Marathon in Guangxi, with total season prize money exceeding 200,000 yuan.

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The 2026 Liuzhou Marathon has come to a successful close. In the women’s marathon, Zhang Shuihua won the championship with a time of 2:36:23 (the exact number of seconds is subject to the official announcement). Despite the high-intensity rhythm of competing in two marathons in seven days, she still maintained top competitive form, earning a 30,000-yuan prize and a car worth 100,000 yuan, proving her strong capacity for back-to-back competition with standout performance. With this race, Zhang Shuihua’s total prize money this year surpassed 200,000 yuan! (including the car)

After officially resigning in 2026, Zhang Shuihua went on to compete in four marathon events in succession. The Chongqing Marathon placed her sixth; the Nanjing Beian Marathon earned her the runner-up position. On March 22, the Lishui Marathon she took the title and broke the event record. This Liuzhou event marked another climb to the top. Her placements across the four events kept rising—from steadily breaking into the front ranks to winning consecutively—showing her continuously improving competitive level.

In this competition, Zhang Shuihua faced strong competitive pressure head-on. In the previous edition, the top domestic finisher Wang Min and the domestic number two Wei Jieting both launched attacks toward her. With two powerful opponents chasing her in turn, she kept her rhythm stable throughout and ultimately managed to break through and win the championship. This trophy is heavy with meaning, and its value is beyond question.

Zhang Shuihua was not an invited athlete for this event; instead, she registered on her own as an ordinary runner, paying a 190-yuan registration fee to take her place on the course. She didn’t enjoy any benefits of the invited-athlete track, nor did she receive any appearance fee. She didn’t care about any of that—she chose to compete purely out of love for marathon running, and won the back-to-back championship with solid, real ability.

On the course, Zhang Shuihua’s running form is highly aesthetic: her stride is open and light, her arm swing is natural and smooth, and her overall motion is coordinated and rhythmic. Throughout the entire race, she runs with ease and composure. She didn’t follow a complex tactical plan, adjusting her pace entirely based on her own bodily feel. Her breathing and her stride are highly synchronized, and she remains calm and steady from start to finish. In the end, she was the first to cross the finish line, her facial expression relaxed, as if she still had some remaining stamina in reserve.

As of this event, Zhang Shuihua’s 2026 season marathon prize earnings from pure prize money have already surpassed 200,000 yuan. She earned 15,000 yuan from the East Pole Marathon, more than 20,000 yuan from the Chongqing Marathon, 10,000 yuan from the Nanjing Beian Marathon, and 40,000 yuan from the Lishui Marathon. Add to that this Liuzhou race’s 30,000 yuan plus a car worth 100,000 yuan, and her total prize money reaches 215,000 yuan! This doesn’t even include appearance fees from some events and endorsement fees from multiple sponsors.