BEIJING, June 14 -- Former NBA star Yao Ming took part in a 24-hour city relay race in Beijing here on Sunday.

Yao's team also included renowned TV anchor Bai Yansong, NBA commentator Xu Jicheng and pop singer Xu Fei.

The 2.26-meter-tall Yao, who retired from basketball in 2011, ran one lap in Saturday's afternoon and another lap on Sunday morning. Each lap is 3.5 kilometers.

"When I was a basketball player, running was part of my work. But now, I only run for fun," Yao said.

The 24-hour relay race kicked off at 3 pm on Saturday and concludes at 3 pm Sunday.

One runner per team is allowed to stay on the track at one time and teams need to run as many laps as possible.

Around 2,000 people from 174 teams took part in the relay race.