Ding Shuibo, CEO of Xtep delivers a speech at the opening ceremony. [Photo provided to China Daily]

A campaign to encourage more Chinese people to join the sport of marathon running kicked off on Dec 15 in Xiamen, Fujian province.

The campaign was jointly launched by sportswear brand Xtep and China Athletics Association, aiming to enhance the competitive level of Chinese marathon runners and train more talented teenager runners.

According to Ding Shuibo, CEO of Xtep and also special vice-president of China Athletics Association, the campaign will award the female and male runners who break the national marathon record 1 million yuan ($143,407) in prize money, and a training program will be held for runners aged between 12 and 20 years old.

Shot put world champion Gong Lijiao was named the ambassador of the campaign.

Two sets of sportswear for marathon runners were also launched at the event, together with a new type of running shoes by Xtep.