(Sports Focus) China's ultra-marathoner runs like Forrest Gump

Fisherman-turned ultra-marathoner Chen Penbin has embarked on a 4,000km journey as he will run 100 marathons in as many consecutive days.

The 37-year-old Chinese completed the first 42.195km run in Guangzhou on Thursday, partly accompanied by 2022 Winter Olympic bid ambassador and former NBA star Yao Ming.

"After winning a couple of stamina competitions, I believe that I could make it to the end no matter how long the run is," said Chen.

Born in a small town in southern Zhejiang province, Chen had never imagined becoming a famous runner one day.

He joined his father's fishing business right after primary school and his biggest dream then was to "become a 'stockholder' to share the fish with other fishermen," recalled Chen, whose turning point was a stamina contest he participated in in 2000.

"I finished first with 438 push-ups in the competition and I had started to take part in all kinds of competitions since and I found my advantage in stamina," he said.

In 2009, Chen came to realize during an endurance race that competition was not only about money.

"I saw the national flag flying from the hotel as soon as I arrived there which touched me a lot, and I came up with an idea to race in seven continents."

In 2014, after a 100km run in South Pole, Chen became the first to have run ultra-marathons in all seven continents.

Yao Ming said Chen was a giant in his own right.

"'Ultra' does not just mean long distance, but also persistence. During the 100 marathons, he will spend a lot of time running alone. He reminded me of Forrest Gump," said the former Houston Rockets center.

Chen will have his second marathon on Friday, from Guangzhou to Dongguan, also in Guangzhou province.

Chen's planned route covers 4219.km, going all the way through Fujian province, Zhejiang, Shanghai, Jiangsu, Shandong, Hebei, Tianjin to Beijing on July 10. Endit