A PASSING OF THE TORCH

As the curtain falls on the careers of a host of Team China stalwarts, a new generation is set to pick up the baton

December saw the Chinese national athletics team gather in Nanning, Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, for a 16-day winter training camp, building toward next year's Nagoya Asian Games, the 2027 Beijing World Athletics Championships and, ultimately, the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

This year's training roster reflects a generational shift: the majority of the athletes are young new faces, while veteran stars are increasingly rare — a mirror of the broader landscape of Chinese athletics in 2025.