Extreme Cold Weather in China Kills 20 in Ultramarathon

BEIJING - At least 20 people were killed when extremely cold weather struck during an ultramarathon on Saturday in China’s northwestern Gansu province, local government officials said on Sunday.

Eight were lightly injured as of 8 a.m. Beijing time (0000 GMT) on Sunday, officials from Baiyin city told a news briefing. The 100-kilometer cross-country race was held on Saturday morning in the Yellow River Stone Forest, a scenic tourist site in Jingtai county under the jurisdiction of Baiyin. Around noon on Saturday, hail, freezing rain and gales hit a mountainous section of the race, with temperatures falling sharply, the officials said.