Background

Raised in a farm family, Chunxiu first studied at the Henan Nanyang Sports School before joining the Jiangsu Team in 2001. Her progress was rapid. Until her huge victory in London, she was perhaps best known for running four sub-2:30 marathons in a calendar year, including two within 14 days. On March 13, 2005, she ran 2:23:24 to win in Seoul, then two weeks later notched a 2:29:58 to take her third consecutive Xiamen title. In the World Championships that summer, she turned in a 2:24:12 performance before finishing second two months later at the Beijing International Marathon in 2:21:11.

It was in Seoul a year later that Chunxiu became just the seventh woman in history to run under the 2:20 barrier; her 2:19:51 would be the second-fastest women’s marathon time in the world for 2006.

Chunxiu came into the Flora London Marathon in April 2007 with the fastest time in the field. On a warm, humid day, she ran her first big-city marathon in the West and became the race’s first Chinese winner, thanks in large part to blasting the 24th mile in 5:09. “I don’t know how fast I can go in the future,” she said afterward, “but I am aiming high.”

Chunxiu's win in London qualified her for the Chinese marathon team for the 2007 IAAF World Championships in Osaka, where she pushed through intense heat and humidity to capture the silver medal. Her runner-up finish in Osaka combined with her victory in London made her the number-one marathoner in the world for 2007, according to Track and Field News.

Building on her success from the previous year, Chunxiu opened up her 2008 season with a win in the half marathon at the Chinese national championships. This was followed up with a runner-up finish at the Good Luck Beijing Marathon, a performance that secured her position for the marathon team for the Beijing Olympics. Competing in her second Olympics, Chunxiu battled the steamy conditions to a third place finish, just one second behind silver medalist Catherine Ndereba.

Her bronze medal from the Beijing Olympics, together with her silver from Osaka and her consistent record at major city marathons has confirmed Zhou Chunxiu as one of the most consistent road racers in the world.