Sighted guides help visually impaired runners past the finish line

Cheng Yi is the founder of a running club based in Shanghai. Established in 2016, the club has several thousand members, including more than 2,000 sighted guides and over 400 visually impaired runners. Every Saturday, a training session is held at Shanghai’s Century Park.

(Xinhua/courtesy of the interviewee)

When jogging in the park, the runners are tied to each other in pairs with a rope, with "visually impaired" and "guide" marked on their backs.

Usually, three sighted guides are needed to help one visually impaired runner finish a marathon race, said Cheng, who has been a guide runner for six years.

"In addition to running with them, I must also keep visually impaired runners safe and informed at all times during the race," said Cheng.

(Xinhua/courtesy of the interviewee)

23-year-old twin brothers Yin Tianbao and Yin Tianyou, both visually impaired, are full-time baristas and marathon runners. Despite losing their sight in childhood, the brothers have always lived colorful lives thanks to running.

The twin brothers completed their first marathon at the 2019 Shanghai International Marathon, when they were 20 years old. When asked by reporters whether the marathon was difficult for them, Yin Tianyou, the younger brother, said "Not really… The only difficulty is that you don't want to run. Once you get started, you've already overcome that difficulty," he said.

(Xinhua/courtesy of the interviewee)

Yin Tianyou became a runner in 2016, attending training sessions each week with the help of his sighted guide. As time went by, the two matched their running tempo and became synchronized with each other.

"I didn't even feel the existence of the rope," Yin Tianyou said when recalling the last marathon he ran.

"I could hear the crowds cheering for the runners, and knew that some runners had passed us or that we had passed them. It was a wonderful experience and I enjoyed myself a lot," he recalled.

(Xinhua/courtesy of the interviewee)

(Xinhua/courtesy of the interviewee)